White Lilies
by Kuro The Dark Ringmaster
Summary: Severus goes every year with white lilies in hand, without fail, to visit the grave of the woman he loved. As Harry's eleventh birthday approaches, he becomes concerned about the world the boy is about to enter and will have to live in. However, he doesn't know of the personal hell Harry is residing in. Adoption fic, Darry, AU Good TMR Bad Dumblerdore.
1. Prologue

_I'm not sure how I'm going to work this, it was just a random one-shot I wrote. It's short for me, however I gave myself space to expand it later. This will probably be after I finish writing A Taste of Heaven in Hell._

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**Prologue:**

It was a crisp autumn, the air was damp and the ground under foot was slightly wet from the rain which had fallen earlier. Leaves which had once been on the now barren trees had fallen and covered the path. It was dark as midnight approached, and a gloomy air had settled over a small village of houses. Standing under the light of the full moon before what had once been a home was a figure dressed in black, he was tall and rather thin with his hands at his side, barely visible from under the long sleeves he wore, the black cloak which had surrounded the figure pooled behind him, it's long sleeved swayed in the wind as it blew gently through the silent village. Sallow hands stood out from the night but not nearly as much as a small bouquet of white lilies.

It had taken the man days to find one place which had pure white lilies this time of year, every year he hunted for the flowers for the woman he loved. Every year without fail he would find them and give them to her. Although the fire had long been extinguished the scent of wood burning filled the man's nose, and that eerie silence which had refused to leave him rung in them. Black eyes closed as the man grimaced in pain, that day he lost everything. His face was even paler in the moonlight and contrasted greatly against the curtains of black hair he had. His nose was rather large and hooked, a gift from his father after one too many blows. His lips pressed together once more forming a thin line before he opened his eyes and surveyed what was left of it. Most of it had fallen down; the entire second floor's roof had collapsed inward. The initial blast had taken out part of the roof; he could still remember climbing over the rubble to get inside. The windows were broken now, the walls were slowly falling apart and the numbers and name which had once proclaimed the house as the residence of the Potters had tarnished.

He had lost everything and yet nothing at the same time, she wasn't his, she belonged to Potter. Hesitantly long fingers slipped out from the long sleeves of the robe and gently caressed the closed gate of the house; the wood was weathered and harsh to the touch. His potion stained fingers rested on the gate for a moment as he remembered how the house had once looked. The gardens had been filled with greenery, flowers bloomed and the gate was smooth and stained, now it looked as though it had been dragged out of a garbage heap, the perennials had withered away from the lack of care and the vines which had covered the rest of the gate started to take over the house its self. It had been ten years, a decade, and yet he still couldn't do it. He couldn't cross the threshold, far too many memories were there, memories of a life he knew he could never have.

The man turned on his heel and began to stride to an all too familiar destination, the end. His black, pointed boots clicked as he continued to walk down the street, his robe bellowed behind him as he cradled the delicate white flowers in his hands. They were for her, even if he could never have her, he still loved her. He smiled grimly as he remembered the woman's fiery red hair which matched her temper all too well. Her small nose and sweet cheeks and finally those eyes, her beautiful doe like emerald green eyes. Standing before him was the one statue he couldn't stand, the Potters in all their glory, an reminder again of what he had lost so long ago. He continued on his path to the cemetery and before he even realized it found himself standing before a familiar sight, a head stone with two names, James and Lily Potter. No matter how many times he had seen it, his emotions still got the best of him, a chill sliced into him and caused him to tremble. Hesitantly he slipped his fingers over the damp and cold headstone. They traced the smooth granite and slowly lowered to run over her name, Lily's name.

He loved her with all his heart, and yet she had chosen Potter, he had known her for years before they even went to Hogwarts only for him to lose her. "Hi Lily," he rasped as he fought back a fresh wave of grief. After a moment he bent to the ground and knelt before her, "It's that time of year again, your son will be coming to Hogwarts soon," he said softly as he felt the supple petals of the lilies in his hands. "Things have gotten dark without you around, I'm scared of the world Harry will be walking into," he stated sadly, he had given up fearing the world in which he was sliding into quickly, he had chosen to slip into the dark. "I managed to get Albus to allow me to leave the castle tonight, he nearly denied me, silly isn't it?" he asked sadly as he turned his attention to the flowers, "I had to hunt for them this year, every year they are getting harder and harder to find."

He smiled sadly at the flowers, he remembered the first time he had given her a lily, it was white as well, they were nine years old sitting in their favorite spot. He had managed to flitch a lily from the neighbor's garden. The large flower was soft to the touch; it reminded him of her skin and tender touch when ever he was hurt. He could remember how she helped patch him up after Tobias beat him. He had held the flower out to the girl and watched as her face lit up with joy, her words rang in his ears, "Sev it's beautiful," she gushed. She was the only one allowed to call him that, Sev, it was a nickname reserved just for her. He demanded that everyone else call him Severus, although Lucius never listened to him and called him Sev anyway, which he yelled about, only she could say it. She eagerly took the flower and tucked it behind her ear, the resilient white peddles of the flower stood out against her fiery red hair, the golden sunlight made her glow like an angel. He shook his head and sighed, he never told her, he placed the flowers on the ground and pulled out an all too familiar ebony wand. With a simple movement he placed a charm on the flowers so that they would remain in bloom for the rest of the year until his return. He slowly rose from the earth and gazed longingly at the stone. "I love you, I have always loved you," he whispered as he touched the cold stone once more before turning on his heel and aparating back to a castle filled with young witches and wizards.

All of whom had seemed to have never learned just what happened that All Hallows Eve Night, the night he would never forget from 10 years ago, the night he lost his Lily.


	2. Chapter 1: They Came with the Snow

_Author's Note: I decided to put this up earlier than I planned. It was the holidays after all and I decided not to make you gus wait. Please note that this is my first Harry Potter Fan Fiction. _

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**Chapter 1: They Came With the Snow**

The scent of ginger bread and sweets hung in the air as the house bustled and laughter filled it. Cinnamon, nutmeg, molasses and ginger, all key elements to a bright and beautiful holiday, the soft woodiness of pine lingered. Green garland wrapped around the staircase with white lights and large red velvet bows. There was a large green wreath on the door covered in plastic ornaments and fake packages. A snowman rested on a small table by the door with plastic buttons for eyes, standing tall in a corner was a tree that had yet to be decorated. It's eaves were bare as it waited for the special touches of a family to transform it from simply a tree into a beacon of joy for the season. The walls were lined with photos of what appeared to be a beach ball with different colored caps, it was only upon further inspection that the viewer learned that said ball was a child. Nearly every photo was the same, three faces staring back at the viewer, smiling with different back drops. Standing in the kitchen in a pastel pink apron was a lanky horse faced woman, her eyes were narrow and face covered in wrinkles. She was wearing a dress that looked as though it had been plucked from the closet of a traditional '50s house wife, complete with red nails and belt. Standing beside her in a green and red holiday sail was a whale of a boy, who honestly looked like a pig in trousers. He had thin blond hair and his face was as round as a ball. His fingers were covered in the icing used to plaster smiles on the ginger bread men, "Now pumpkin, don't eat all the icing, we have to still add their faces," she chirped. The boy whined, "Mummy, can't we just make more?"

There was a deep chuckle from the doorway, "'Atta boy Dudley, always trying to get his money's worth," said another whale like man, his eyes were barely visible in on his face. He had a mustache and thing grey hair, his voice carried through the house. Yet no one know that nestled inside of a cupboard, in the dark far away from the merriment was a little boy. He was a scrawny little boy, pale and rather gaunt, large burses and scars littered his body. His black hair was a perpetual mess, he had a pair of large emerald green eyes hidden behind large round glasses that were held together mainly by tape. The only thing the boy liked about himself was his lightning bolt shaped scar on his head, he thought it was nice to look different. He was wrapped in clothes which were three times larger than he was, they swallowed him. His body ached all over and he was stiff from the last beating, his stomach was growling painfully as he smelt the gingerbread wafting in the air, which he knew he would never be able to have.

"Freak, decorate the tree," barked a harsh voice which was accompanied by a great deal of rapping on the door. "Yes Aunt Petunia," he replied quickly, he listened to the dead bolt slide from the other side of the door and waited patently in the darkness for the door to swing open and allow the light in. Without fail Petunia swung the door open and stood off to the side with her hands on her hips. Even though he knew Freak wasn't his name, he still replied to it. It had been so long since he had heard his name, like many other facts about himself; he only learned them so he could attend school. However, since it was break he didn't get the luxury of hearing it, instead he was called Freak or Boy, both names he hated. He slowly crawled out of his small cupboard that was located under the stairs. It was always dusty and filled with spiders; it often smelt of the chemicals which were also housed in it.

Her eyes pierced him as she glared harshly at the little boy who was standing before him, even though he didn't look up, he knew full well she was, he could feel her gaze on him. "You burnt the breakfast this morning, however, since Mister Mason will be coming, we need the tree decorated," she stated harshly, her voice was cold and sounded nothing like the sweet one that was reserved for his cousin Dudley. "Yes, Aunt Petunia," he replied softly, knowing that if he made much noise or fuss he wouldn't be fed. She seemed pleased with this and snapped, "Well into the living room, there are several boxes. Put everything on the tree and try not to break anything." Harry listened to her storm away before finally lifting his gaze. He stared at the large tree and at the boxes on the floor, he was ten now, since he had turned eight he was decorating the tree, wrapping presents and cooking dinners. He knew how to do laundry, iron and clean better than even his Aunt who wanted the house to look as though it came out of a magazine catalogue.

Thankfully his uncle had put the lights on the tree, the year before last he had forgotten and he had sent the tree falling to the floor, through a glass table on it's way as he tried to get the lights on it. Without any more thought he reached into a box and pulled out a tray of glistening glass orbs, they were so reflective that he could see himself in them. He paused as he stared at his reflection, he sighed before attaching a green hook and hanging it on the tree. For three weeks he would be known as Freak, and never Harry. Harry's fingers trembled slightly as he lifted another ornament to place on the limbs of the blue spruce. He could remember the beating he had received for breaking one the first time he decorated the tree. His uncle, Vernon, had broken his wrist and then stated that Harry had broken it when he fell down the stairs. No one questioned it, they never did. Each glass ball was placed on the tree with care. The first box was filled with the glistening glass orbs. However it was the second box which Harry always thought was ugly, it contained all of Dudly's home made ornaments. While the Durslys were so proud to have them, Harry wanted to throw them away. They were poorly made and none of them were his.

Each year his class would make one for the tree, and every year it would be thrown away. It hurt at first, and then it got to the point where he spared them the trouble of disposing of it and threw it out himself. Harry placed a poorly made clay snowman on the tree next, it looked like it had three eyes and the carrot of it's nose was off center. He could remember the fuss Petunia made when Dudely presented it to her, she acted as though it were the work of Manet. Harry became lost in the repetitive motion of pulling the ornaments out of the box and putting them on the tree, to the point that he didn't realize that there was a looming presence behind him. "Hey Freak, careful with my ornaments," Dudely stated harshly, his voice was threatening and made Harry tremble.

Although Vernon was the one who beat him Dudely was intimidating in other ways, like Harry Hunting, a sport which Duddely and his friends found pleasure in. Harry's eyes widened as he turned to see his whale like cousin holding a porcelain white bell with the words, "So that all the angels may come," on it. "I am," replied Harry slowly, he knew this game, Dudely loved it when Harry was in trouble. Dudelly wrinkled his nose, "No you ain't. Look at the tree it's hideous," he stated. Harry's eyes widened as he felt his temper bubble slightly, he didn't even realize it but an hour had passed from when he had started. "It wouldn't be if I didn't have to hang your ornaments on it," Harry replied. He froze and bit his lip, he shouldn't have said that. Dudely smiled darkly as he slowly opened his hand allowing for the small red orb to fall from the boy's sausage like fingers.

Harry's eyes widened as he watched the bell shatter on the floor, white shards flew every where, and stuck in the carpet. "Dad, Freak broke an ornament!" he shouted. Harry paled when he heard Vernon shout, "You worthless!" as he barged into the room. The slender little boy stared at the now shattered bell, it was an heirloom. "You think you can break our stuff and get away with it!" he shouted angrily. Harry was trembling, fear ran through his body in waves, he didn't want this, he just wanted to have a peaceful Christmas. Vernon grabbed Harry's arm harshly and twisted it behind the boy's back, the cracking sound filled Harry's ears as Vernon twisted. It hurt, however, Harry knew if he cried out, it would only make it worse. "It appears that once wasn't enough today," spat Vernon. Harry closed his eyes and began to pray that he would not wake up after this beating.

Vernon harshly dragged Harry to the basement, it was dark and cold. All of the warmth which had flowed through the upper floors of the house was gone as he entered the darkness of the basement. Vernon growled and shoved the boy against the wall. Harry knew the drill; he knew it all to well. The little boy slipped out of the raggedy tee he was wearing a draped it over a chair. Once that was done he slipped out of his pants so that he was nude before his uncle. "It would appear that we will have to resort to harsher treatment," Vernon hissed. Harry's eyes widened when he spotted a belt with a large steel buckle, he knew his uncle wouldn't go easy on him, he would get the buckle for what he had done, for even being born. "Hands on the wall," Vernon spat. Harry did as he was told and closed his eyes, "You will count them, fifteen lashings," said Vernon darkly as he snapped the leather belt. "Yes, sir," Harry replied quickly as he closed his eyes and bit his lip. Without warning Vernon brought the belt down upon the boy's marred back. Harry fought every urge to scream as he felt the metal bit his skin, tugging his barely healed wounds open. It stung, "One," Harry stated, this was going to be a long punishment.

~~WL~~

The holidays were perhaps one of the brightest times of year, and yet they brought one man in particular the most pain. Hunched over a steaming caldron in his laboratory in Spinners end was none other than Professor Severus Snape, Potions Master of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Several daring Gryffindors of the house Quiditch team pulled a few dangerous stunts and thanks to that nearly ran Poppy out of Blood Replenisher. Severus sighed as he stirred the caldron counter clockwise with a crystal stirring rod, his potion stained fingers held it tenderly. He missed Lily the most this time of year and the Christmases at the Evan's house, away from Tobias. Every year he would light a candle in his bed room window for one person, Lily. Even though Snape wasn't a religious man in nature, he still thought that if he lit the candle that she would at least visit him for one night. He sighed as he removed the caldron from heat and waited for the potion to cool before he could siphon it off and bottle it properly. All of the bottles were waiting with his signature labels and crest pressed into the glass.

He listened to his wards ring with a warning before a loud pop occurred. "Hello Lucius," Snape said smoothly as he began cleaning up the mess which had been made while brewing. "How they hell did you know it was me?" asked the blonde aristocrat as he strode in. Severus smirked as he listened to the clock in the other room chime, "Because you are a minute early and you always show up this time each year to invite me to your home for dinner," he replied. His black eyes found a pair of rather amused grays looking back at him, "I suppose you are right," replied Lucius as he dropped the aristocratic mask of a Malfoy and donned the loving friend. "I just don't want to see you alone on Christmas Eve and Narcissa is always worried that you aren't eating again," he pointed out before making himself comfortable on a stool in the lab. Ever since Lucius had gotten the address to Spinner's End and demanded to be keyed into the wards, Severus was unable to get the blonde to go away. Oddly the company was welcome, not that Severus would ever admit it. "I am, ask Tilly," he said smoothly as he walked over to the caldron and began filling the labeled bottles with the garnet red potion. Lucius heaved a sigh and crossed his arms, "Severus, just join us for dinner when you're done, Draco misses you," he stated simply.

Severus arched a brow as he looked at the blonde, "Okay, we all miss you," Lucius clarified. There was a hint of sadness in the man's voice, it seemed to echo through the room, "Severus, it's the holidays and you're cooped up making Blood Replenisher, that's not a really attractive way to spend the Holidays," Lucius reasoned as he looked at his cane in his leather gloved hands. His black leather fingers traced the silver head of the serpent. Few knew that Lucius' wand was tucked inside the top of his cane, the wizard couldn't stand being defenseless, the made him nervous. "It has to be done," Severus replied simply and Lucius hummed as he shook his head, his platinum blond hair swayed as he did so. "Sev, come on, it can wait till tomorrow can't it? You've already made one batch," Lucius observed as his cold grey eyes fell on the large pewter caldron and the vials which the Potion's Master was filling. Severus twitched when Lucius used the nickname, however let it slide. Lucius knew who Severus was avoiding thinking about, Lily. Even when they were older Severus spent time with Lily, they even went looking for trees, not anymore.

Before the Potion's Master could reply he heard his floo buzz. "You better take a look, it might be Professor Dumbledore," he drawled before rising and wandering into another room. Severus sighed and rubbed his hand over his eyes before striding toward the fireplace and sticking his head into it. "Yes Albus?" he drawled, "I've been making potions for Poppy, can't this wait?" The Headmaster chuckled, his eyes held that infernal twinkle. "No my boy, I'm afraid not. I need someone to check on Harry, the person I have watching the house is concerned for his well being. Although I assure you that they are taking wonderful care of the boy," Albus said simply. Severus stared at the Headmaster, he didn't want to see Harry, the reminder of who he had lost Lily to. He glared angrily at the Headmaster and replied, "If they are taking such wonderful care of him, then I don't need to go," he stated, "Send Minerva or Filius. I'm very busy."

Albus smiled brightly, "Come now Severus, surly Lily would want you to check on the boy. I doubt anything is wrong, just pop in," he said smoothly. Severus internally sighed, the man wasn't going to leave him be until he did so, of course he would use Lily. "Fine, I need the address," he spat, his arms were crossed as he mentally kicked himself for giving in so easily. Then again, it would get a certain blonde out of his hair for a bit, which wasn't a bad idea. "Number 4, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey," replied Albus with a grin. "Is there anything else Albus?" asked Severus tightly, he wasn't comfortable going into a muggle area let alone to see Potter. "No, Happy Christmas, Severus," Albus chirped before stepping away from the floo. Severus rose to his full hight and scowled at the aristocrat who had clearly been evesdropping in the doorway. "Well we have his address now," said Lucius with a grin. The Potion's Master sighed and looked at the blonde, "Looks like I will be going to your home sooner than expected," he commented as he picked up a handful of floo powder and tossed it into the fire. "Malfoy Manor, England," he shouted over the roar of the fire.

Once he had managed to step out of the fireplace he swept the soot from his shoulder and looked at the decorated manor. It looked as though it were part of an elaborate fairytale. A massive tree stood in the foyer, decorated in snow and ice with assorted ornaments through out. Birds were perched in it, which had once been paper, clearly Narcissa had decided to go a little further this year, he spotted tiny lanterns hanging in the tree. A beautiful star hovered just above the top of the tree, it's soft blue light caressed the walls and ceiling. Severus stared at the advanced work of Lucius' wife, Narcissa was very good at charms and heiling, however not as good as Lily. Lily was one of the best and could have been a Charm's Mistress if she were still alive. The railings of the stairs were wrapped in living garland with bows, ribbons and ice orbs. His eyes traveled around the room as he spotted the holly and poinsettias. He manor was glistening with warmth and joy, Lucius hummed affectionately as he slipped his hands in his pockets and smiled, "Home," he breathed as he walked through the hallway past Severus. This Lucius was very different from the one which frequented the halls of the Ministry of Magic, this one was relaxed, loving and softer.

In the distance Severus could hear the soft laughter of a very happy Draco and Narcissa. "Draco, you're supposed to frost the cookies, not wear it," she teased. The sight must have been warm, however Severus knew that he wouldn't see them till later. Lucius was leading him to the opposite end of the house. The decorations oddly continued through here, they were getting closer to Lucius' study, then again he did work for the Ministry and had to keep up appearances. The blonde smiled as he opened the doors of his study, before the fire was a large black chair with a slate blue Irish Wolfhound sitting beside it. "Lucius, I thought it would take longer to peel Severus away from his work," teased a very familiar voice, it was smooth and contained a note of humor. As always it's owner spoke just a few disciples over a whisper, something that most people found eerie. "I almost didn't successes until a certain Headmaster ripped him away," replied Lucius.

Severus stood beside the chair and looked at the man who was sitting in it. His bright red eyes shown more vividly in the orange glow of the fire, he had a pale complexion with black hair which had been neatly styled. Curled up in his lap was his massive familiar Nagini, a book was between his long fingers and the man sighed. "What does he want?" he asked elegantly as he arched a brow. He was dressed in a smart black three piece suit with a bright red tie that brought out his eyes, a pocket watch hung from one of the buttons on his waist coat. Severus drew a deep breath before replying, "He wants me to check on Potter, my lord." Red eyes gazed into the fire as though they were searching for something, "I see," he drawled. The book snapped closed and found it's self on the table beside him before Severus watched the man's long fingers fish his familiar yew and phoenix feather wand from his pocket and twirled it absent mindedly. "Who rang the alarm?" he asked after a moment. Severus knew the man would want to know, "I have no idea my lord, Albus didn't say anything," he replied.

The yew and phoenix feather wand stopped moving, "Severus, we are in privet, call me Tom like you always have. That formality is for meetings," he stated as he rubbed his temples, a sign of irritation in the rather young looking Tom Riddle. "Forgive me," Severus said softly. The dark haired man chuckled and smiled a little, "Always the same. Severus, do as Dumbledore asks, check on the boy. However-" Tom abruptly stopped speaking and grit his teeth, his free hand gripped the arm of the leather chair he was sitting in. His face twisted in pain as he closed his eyes and hissed, "Again? It's nearly Christmas," he seethed as his grip increased on the arm of the chair.

"Tom?" asked Severus quickly, instantly getting ready to help the man sitting before him. Tom drew a deep breath before slowly opening his eyes, "They're hurting him, again, I don't know how I know, I just do," he stated as he slowly loosened his grip on the chair. Nangini perked up and began hissing to her master, Tom replied to her quickly, it was oddly soothing to watch the two converse with one another. "What do you mean?" asked Severus slowly. Tom sighed as he looked at the Potion's Master, "Harry isn't safe there, no matter what the old man says, check on him and if you see a reason to remove him from that hell hole," Tom said slowly. Severus looked to Lucius who was staring at the man before him, "No one deserves that," Tom said slowly. Although Severus honestly wanted to know more, he knew it was a very bad idea to question the young dark lord so he nodded and simply waited to be sent off. It had been a few years since they brought the dark lord back, however after doing so the man asked to have more of his Hocruxes destroyed so he could be whole. Even though the man had been insane at first, the one who was sitting in the chair now was perfectly stable and a kind man who had a bit of a temper. "You are dismissed, and Severus take Lucius with you," Tom added. Lucius grinned with delight as he trailed after the Potion's Master who was now attempting to keep his temper in check, "Of course my lord," he replied stiffly before leaving the study, with Lucius hot on his heels.

"You thought you were getting rid of me huh?" chirped Lucius as he continued down the hallway. Severus rolled his eyes and replied, "No of course not. It wouldn't be a horrid idea to bring an aristocratic blonde lord by the name of Malfoy to the suburbs of Britain." Severus grinned as he strode toward the foyer, "I resent that!" shouted Lucius as he hurried after the long strides of Severus. "Resent what?" asked a silky smooth voice, Lucius turned to see Narcissa standing in the hall with her arms crossed and a look of doubt on her face. "Nothing, I have to go with Severus on a mission for the Dark Lord," said Lucius smoothly. She glared at him as though he were a little boy attempting to get out of a bath, which was something a Malfoy would never do. "Oh?" she asked. Lucius sighed and looked pleadingly at Severus. "You're wife, not mine," Severus replied, "Lovely as always Narcissa," he said with a smile. She chuckled and looked at the Potion's Master, "Severus will you return in time for dinner?" she asked curiously. Lucius was still fidgeting a little but seemed to relax, they really were an excellent match for one another. "Yes, we both will," he replied. She sighed and waved her hand, "Just be careful you two, dinner's at eight," she stated softly.

~~xXx~~

The air outside was cold which was oddly soothing the fire, which had spread across Harry's back. He could still hear the crack of the belt as it hit his skin, after the thirty lashings, Vernon decided to add another reminder one which Harry knew would haunt him. Blood trickled down his back and leg; it began to soak through his pants and shirt. He had been thrown one of his cousin's old jackets and handed a wad of cash, Petunia needed him to pick up more crackers, she hadn't purchased enough of them for the tray she was putting together in order to entertain the Masons. His green eyes were slightly swollen from crying as he looked at the now empty street, thankfully the store wasn't too far. The little boy shoved his hands in his pockets before he started walking slowly down the street. Thankfully his uncle hadn't broken anything, but it didn't hurt any less. The only place they never hurt him was his face, everything else was up for the taking. Harry shivered from the thought of his uncle and his cruelty. For as long as he could remember he was beaten, starved and ignored. All he wanted was a family of his own to love him, he didn't think it was selfish, even if the Durselys did.

There wasn't a flake of snow in sight as Harry continued to walk. It didn't snow often in England, in fact it rarely ever did. Yet, he still wanted it to, he wanted to watch those white flakes dance in the air and stare at the fresh blankets which covered the ground and made it seem as though the earth were sleeping. The sky was dark, not a star or even the moon was in it, it was hard to have hope when he couldn't see the stars which were supposed to always be there. He sighed as he continued down the street, suddenly there was a loud crack which made him jump. It sounded as though a cannon had been fired. His eyes scanned the area as his heart began to pound, only to see nothing. He sighed and shook his head, he had to hurry if he were going to make it back to the house before the Masons arrived.

As he walked everything began feeling numb, he wasn't sure if it was from the cold or how badly he was hurt. In all honesty, Harry couldn't tell anymore. He was pulled from his thoughts when he arrived at a small shop, they were fortunately still open. Once through the doors Harry was greeted with a gust of warmth, usually he liked it, however today he didn't have the time to enjoy it. Retrieving the crackers was his priority, even if Vernon had guests coming that didn't mean Harry wouldn't get beaten later for being seen or being late. He had already been told to get in his cupboard and stay there for the rest of the evening after getting the crackers. Harry walked down the isle and looked at the rows and colorful boxes of crackers, scanning for the box which Petunia always bought. She hated anything that didn't seem as though it came out of a magazine or book, she desired the perfect family, a family without him. She would always tell him how useless and how much of a burden he was, she wouldn't even say his name.

Harry's thin fingers wrapped around the box as he pulled it from the shelf, with the crackers in hand he made his way to the register. He handed the woman the money and counted back the change before pocketing it and the receipt. He knew if he didn't have all of the change and the receipt he would be in for it. The plastic was clutched in his arms as he slowly left the store, his hands hurt from the cold and he could see his breath. It was much colder than before, Harry sighed, he knew if it got too cold he would never see the snow fall. He continued walking when he noticed something white dance before his eyes and land on the large navy blue coat he was wearing. He froze standing in front of a park and stared wide eyed at the fleck. "Snow?" he asked softly. Another flake danced in the breeze causing a smile to curve Harry's lips.

He slowly began to walk again, a smile on his face as he watched the snow fall around him, and it began to fall much faster and harder than it had started. His eyes widened when he realized that he would never make it back home if he got stuck in the snow and the Dursleys wouldn't go looking for him. He picked up his pace and was about to run when he heard a shout, which was followed by something hard and cold hitting his side. Instantly Harry froze and stared at his sleeve, snow was caked on it from a snowball. His eyes frantically searched for a member of Dudely's crew to land on a pair of figured a few paces away. "Missed," proclaimed a deep silky smooth voice with a note of triumph. "Apparently not," said another, this one was smooth but not as deep, it had an air of sophistication to it which made Harry think of Mr. Mason.

"Throw one back!" called the deeper of the two, "I'm sure he'd love assistance destroying his robes even more!" Harry was still and remained quiet, he had no idea what to do, part of him said to run and yet the other part, the one which was more curious was begging to stay.

~~xXx~~

Surrey was quiet and very cold, oddly it was colder than his home in Spinner's End. Severus looked over to see Lucius standing at his side, they had landed in a park, clearly the wards wouldn't let them near the house. "No snow?" asked Lucius innocently as he looked around the muggle play ground. Severus shrugged and pointed out, "It's not cold enough, hopefully it doesn't get too cold though," he said softly. Lucius looked up and hummed, Severus knew that there were clouds and it was only a matter of time before the snow began to fall, however, he wasn't about to tell the snow loving Lucius that. He wouldn't be able to get the blond aristocrat back to his wife if he did. "Looks like we have to walk," Lucius said as he began to march toward the sidewalk, when Severus saw a small form walking on the other side of the street. "Wait," he instructed as he watched the child.

Severus stared at the slender form which was limping slightly, his small body was practically curled over it's self as he walked from the cold. "What?" asked Lucius as he looked the same way that Severus was. The boy looked up and that was when Severus felt his world stop, the boy had large round glasses, messy black hair and a pair of beautiful emerald eyes, the eyes which haunted both his dreams and nightmares. Severus was quiet as he watched the boy continue walking. "No, Sev, he's nearly the same age as Draco, and that boy doesn't even look 5," Lucius said harshly. Severus could tell that Lucius didn't believe him, but the Potion's Master knew it had to be Potter. "Why would his family let him walk the streets this late?" asked Lucius.

Oddly the blond had asked the same question he had and he hummed before looking at him, "I don't know." By this point the snow was falling faster and a certain blond was enjoying it, a little too much by Severus' standards. A snowball was flung in his direction and hit the dower man in the back. Severus looked over his shoulder with his eyes narrowed at a grinning Malfoy, now he knew just where Draco got his mischievous stint from. Even Lucius was well bred and acted as though he were above everyone else, the truth was he enjoyed causing trouble like anyone else. Severus smiled crookedly as he slipped his wand out of his sleeve and flicked it. Snow from a near by branch fell down Lucius' robes, causing the man to howl. "Not funny, Sev!" he hissed as he danced a little. Severus simply grinned, "That's cold!" shouted Lucius, "And these were new robes!" It took everything Severus had not to stick out his tongue at the aristocrat who was attempting several warming charms. "You're so getting it," Lucius challenged as he pointed his ebony wand at the Potion's Master. On cue a snowball was flung toward the man's back once again, Severus smirked as he stepped aside to allow the snowball the right of way. "Missed," he said with a hint of triumph, which only irritated the Malfoy patriarch more. It sailed through the air to a familiar slender form. Severus' eyes went wide as he watched the ball hit the boy's arm.

The boy froze and looked around frantically, a box was clutched to his chest in a market bag, at least part of the mystery was solved. "Throw one back!" called Severus, "I'm sure he would love assistance destroying his robes even more!" Lucius gaped at the man who was grinning from ear to ear, "You!" shouted Lucius as he launched himself at Severus and teasingly punched the man. The figure stood frighteningly still and Severus' expression changed from light to dark as he gently pushed Lucius away and began to walk toward the child. Something was very wrong, he just didn't know what.

~~xXx~~

Harry's eyes widened as the two figures came into view, both of them were in stunning long robes, they looked like carolers from the Victorian Era. The taller of the two was in all black, his robes billowed behind him as though he were floating. He had shoulder length black hair which framed his face and had a slight wave to it, his nose was rather large and crooked, it looked as though he had broken it as a child. He had a pair of dark black eyes which seemed to see through Harry, and stood out greatly against his sallow skin. The man who stood beside him had long platinum blond hair and cool grey eyes, his features were angular and reminded Harry of a Greek statue. He was clutching a cane in one of his hands and stood rather proud, his robes were covered in silver accents and were an emerald green.

"Are you alright?" asked the dark haired man, his deep voice was soft yet seemed to echo. Harry stared at the man, he knew what he wanted to say, however he also knew he would get severely punished if he did. "I'm fine," he replied softly and looked at the two. Lucius looked at Harry critically, "Why are you out here?" he asked. His grip on the box of crackers increased as he formulated an answer in his head, "Aunt Petunia ran out of crackers for our party," he said simply as he looked up at the two men. The man with black eyes looked at him skeptically, yet remained silent. Harry had a feeling the man knew that he wasn't saying everything. He hummed and looked at the pair, "I have to go, Happy Christmas," he said brightly as he turned to leave. "Wait," commanded the darker of the pair.

He slowly knelt before Harry and whispered, "Are you happy?" those three words were laced with concern, an emotion which Harry rarely received. He nodded meekly, he had to get away, his Aunt and Uncle would kill him if he wasn't back soon. "Look at me." They were filled with sadness and pain, so much that Harry couldn't resist looking into a pair of solemn onyx eyes. There was snow clinging to the man's black hair and robe. "I'm Severus and this is Lucius, I'm a Professor at a school, you can talk to me," he pried. The blond man looked slightly shocked by this action, which told Harry that this was very important, "I have to get home," he replied, he couldn't tell a stranger of the inevitable beating which would probably occur, or that fact that he was in pain and dizzy both from blood loss and lack of food. Severus sighed and picked up a handful of snow. Harry half expected the man to throw it in his face and laugh at him for falling for his tricks of being nice. The man looked around quickly before pulling out a stick and pointing it at the snow; he mumbled a word and a beautiful green light jetted out of the tip of the man's black stick. The green light was warm and curled around the snow folding it and shaping it.

Harry's eyes widened as he looked at the product of this green light. Sitting in the palm of Severus' hand was a glass like lily, it glistened in the light and made Harry smile. Severus held the lily out to the boy, "Take it with you, it will never melt," Severus said softly as he looked into Harry's eyes. Harry tentatively touched the smooth and warm petals of the flower, they were hard yet beautiful. He smiled gently before picking it up to examine it. "Why?" asked Harry, he looked at Severus and Lucius in confusion. "Because it's the holidays and you need a gift don't you?" asked Lucius softly while Severus rose from the ground. Harry looked at the flower in his hand and realized that he had to hide it, or Petunia would believe he stole it. "Thank you," he whispered as he admired the flower. "How did you do that?" asked Harry curiously. Lucius shot an amused look at Severus who sighed and looked at the boy, "Magic," was his reply. Harry was about to ask another question when he noticed a car heading toward the house. His heart practically stopped, "I have to go now," he said in a panic as he looked at the flower. "Thank you," he said again before dashing down the street toward the placed he would never call home. Leaving behind him two strangers who didn't seem to scare him. It was odd though, they had come with the snow, then again he had been hoping the snow would come.

Harry rounded the corner and slipped into the backyard, there were several inches of snow on the ground now which made running a little more of a challenge. He sighed as he opened the door of the kitchen and placed the crackers on the counter as well as the receipts and the money. His mind was still filled with the thoughts of the two men who had come with the snow.


	3. Chapter 2: Her Son

_Author's Note: I wanted to thank everyone who has been reviewing, adding this piece to their favorites as well as their following alerts lists. I usually send out personal PMs, but there are so many of you, it's tough. I'll get through them I promise. On another note I also want to thank those of you who have added me as an author to your favorites list as well as alert subscription. I'm honored that you view me as worthy enough to be there. _

* * *

**Chapter 2: Her Son**

Harry managed to slip into the kitchen of his home unnoticed by the Dursleys, his hands had been trembling after placing the box on the counter, he was lucky that the car which had passed him wasn't the Mason's, extraordinarily lucky. Petunia walked into the kitchen, she was wearing a different dress and put on the pearls which Vernon had purchased for her. She sneered at Harry before looking at the piece of the cake which were yet to be assembled. "I want the cake assembled and frosted, after that you will go to your cupboard," she stated harshly, her eyes were like knives as they sliced through him. Harry nodded meekly before grabbing his step stool and placing it before the counter, he was short and had a hard time reaching the counters, especially since his Aunt wanted the cake assembled on the crustal bottom of the cake dome. Once the pine wooden stool was placed before the counter Harry washed his hands in the sink and moved to assembling the Orange Spice cake. He had made the batter earlier and baked the pans, all Petunia had done was pull them out and left he pans on the cold kitchen counter. Luckily the bases hadn't been stuck inside them, in reality Harry ensured that they wouldn't, he had taken the time to line the pans with parchment that way they would simply pop out of place.

He stepped onto the stool after drying his hands on a floral dish towel and set to work. Petunia had taught him how to bake when he was seven and had been icing cakes since he was six. It didn't take long for him to get better at making them than her. Harry's small hands gently pulled the two large thick disk like orange cakes from the pans and he hummed with irritation, there was a bulge in the center of the two. Peunia wouldn't be happy if it didn't look as though it had been brought out of a bakery earlier. Harry reached over for a knife and pulled it from the knife block, he selected a long serrated blade and swiftly sliced the excess off of the first piece to make a smooth and even top. A shiver ran down his spine and he felt as though he were being watched, but it wasn't the same as when Vernon had watched him. This surge of sadness and utter curiosity was forging, it showed concern. Harry placed the black samurai handled knife on the counter and looked around curiously for a moment, he even glanced out the window which was before him since he was icing the cake by the window. He shook his head and sighed, no one wanted him, so watching him wouldn't make sense, or at least that was he thought. The only time the Durselys looked his way was to ensure that he was doing his chores and couldn't be seen by anyone.

Small hands wrapped around the knife again, Petunia loved cooking shows, which Harry didn't mind oddly he learned a lot from them, including how to hold a knife. His hands may have been small to handle such a large blade but he knew how. The second base was leveled and Harry made quick work of stepping off the stool to retrieve the icings he had made from scratch. He had made a rather sweet chocolate icing to cover the cake and then both orange and green icing for the roses to go on the cake. Soon enough the young boy was lost in the art of decorating the cake. Beautiful blooming and budded roses were squeezed onto the cake with ease, they were vibrant against the light brown icing and only seemed to stand out more when he added the green leaves. He finished by adding a beautiful curl for a vine and placed the heavy large glass dome over the cake. It was spotless and he could see his reflection in it, which made him cringe. He was thinner than he remember and looked sickly, he closed his eyes before stepping away from the counter, he couldn't stand looking at his gaunt face much longer, it only made the nightmare which he called his life more real.

"Finished?" spat Petunia, which nearly made Harry jump. The boy looked at the tile floor with great interest as he nodded, "Orange?" she hissed. Harry immediately tensed, he had forgotten his aunt would never use such a masculine and bright color, "How putrid," she sneered, her nose wrinkled as she spoke. Harry closed his eyes as he waited to be struck, "We'll just have to cope," she stated before grabbing Harry harshly by the back of his shirt and dragging him to his cupboard. Oddly Harry didn't hate this; it meant he would be away from Vernon, which was actually far more appealing than even sampling the cake he had made. Before the child even realized it he was being shoved through the door and he heard the cupboard door slap closed before the locks were put in place. "Don't you dare make a sound," Petunia hissed through the door before slamming the vent closed and walking briskly toward the door.

Harry smiled as he pulled out a candle and matches, after a moment he lit the tape and fished the beautiful gift from his pocket. It glistened in the light as his fingers ran over its smooth surface, it was still cool in his fingers. He could remember the light which had surrounded the snow as a beautiful flower took shape, oddly it wasn't only that the boy remembered, but the elegant fingers of the man who had given him the gift. They were long and pale, the only thing which separated them from being as white as snow was the slight tinge of pink they had taken from being out in the cold. They looked harsh and yet gentle, he could still remember the look in the man's eyes, he didn't recognize it. Yet he liked it, it made him feel warm even in the cold. He smiled sadly and thought of how he would never see them again, after all he was quite sure that they would have vanished by now, or melt away with the snow.

~~WL~~

Severus looked at Lucius, he knew something wasn't right, no child would run that quickly when they saw a car or look that pale. There were children who were fickle eaters and then there were the ones who were starved, Severus was certain Potter was starved. "Come on, I don't like the feeling of this," Severus said smoothly before darting after the boy, the entire time he was praying he was wrong. For once in his life he was praying that he was wrong, he shook his head and whispered, "No, twice." He couldn't let Lily's child suffer, no child deserved to be treated in such a way. Lucius was following behind him and oddly keeping up, then again the aristocrat seemed as startled as he was at the sight of the boy. Lucius looked as though he wanted to scoop Harry up in his arms and hold the boy tightly, like he did Draco when he was hurt.

The dower man couldn't disagree with his friend, he wanted to do the very same as he looked into those green eyes, one which looked tired and nearly dead. It wasn't until he did magic that the boy seemed to come back to life, if only briefly. It was at that moment Severus understood what Tom had said, now he understood, something was very wrong with this situation. His chest was heaving as he continued to run in hopes of catching the boy, before he walked back into that house. Only to find himself staring at the child walking through the back door of the house and into the kitchen, Lucius was standing doubled over beside him panting. "Which of us played Quidich again?" asked the blonde as he attempted to catch his breath. Usually Severus would have reveled in this moment, but he couldn't seem to stop watching the window of the kitchen. With a simple wave of his wand he disillusioned them and stood there. He was rooted in place as he watched the boy tap two cake bases free of parchment lined pans.

At a glanced he looked as though he were simply going to assist his Aunt, it wasn't until Harry had a knife in his hand that Severus realized what the boy was doing, he was assembling a cake. His lips pressed into a hard line as he watched the boy work, "What is he doing?" asked Lucius his gray eyes were narrowed with curiosity as he attempted to understand what the boy was doing. Severus didn't reply as he watched the boy take a butter knife and work the frosting in the bowl before using a white pastry spatula and putting the chocolate between the two bases. Before Lucius realized it his question was answered as the boy in question finished the dark layer around the two orange cakes and moved to decorating, from what Severus could tell his hands were rather steady and from a distance the roses looked perfect. "They're making him do the job of a House Elf?" asked Lucius in confusion, "I thought Potter was spoiled, at least that's how Albus painted it to be," he commented.

Severus' fists were clenched at his sides as he watched Petunia grab Harry forcefully and walk out of the kitchen. He looked at Lucius and hummed, "We will have to wait for him to come back in view."

~~WL~~

What felt like forever was simply hours as the chatter which emanated from the kitchen filled the house. Laughter in reply to jokes, which had been told rang in Harry's ears. They sounded like the perfect normal family, he had long since extinguished the candle and now sat listening, waiting for the Masons to leave. Vernon was going to receive a promotion soon enough, and Harry knew that the man wanted everything to seem perfect, even if it was a total lie. He hummed as he leaned his head against the wall of the cupboard. His eyes fluttered closed after a moment, everything was sore and he was exhausted. He had cleaned the house spotless, decorated the tree, wrapped gifts, and cooked, he was quite frankly exhausted. Before he realized it his body felt heavy and his mind seemed to drift.

The sound of voices continued to hum in his ears, they were light, merry and sweet. At first he thought it was the people outside his cupboard. Yet when he opened his eyes he wasn't even there. Before he realized it he was somehow standing in London standing before a beautiful children's choir. They were dressed in warm reds and greens, their voices carried through the cold air and Harry's eyes widened. He had never been to London even during Christmas, he looked around quickly at the trees and lights which were glimmering in the night. His eyes fell on parents as they held their children close, protecting them from the world and the boy who was in the cupboard felt a pang of jealousy. Their cheeks were bright red from the cold and they could see their breathes in the air. One figure stood out in particular, standing in a beautiful black suit with a red tie and a long robe which was tick and lined with fur. Harry stared at long white fingers which reminded him of Severus' but this man was different. His hair was chocolate brown and slightly ruffled. He had a pair of striking red eyes, they made him seem warm and different, this man didn't terrify Harry, he actually felt safe. The young raven haired boy looked up at the man's soft and noble features, he looked like one of the men that he often caught Petunia gaping at. He had broad shoulders and stood rather tall, his posture was perfect and small smile curved his lips. His face was tinted a light pink due to the cold and he looked even more regal. After a moment Harry turned his attention to the children who were singing, they sounded wonderful as they sang of Christmas arriving in London. "Beautiful," whispered Harry, he couldn't help it.

Then man stiffened and his eyes widened as he looked down at Harry. His eyes were filled with confusion, "How did you get here?" he asked slowly. Harry felt even more confused as the man addressed him, "It's a dream, that's how," replied Harry slowly. He had no idea what the man was going on about, there was now way for him to leave his cupboard, he was locked inside of it. "No Harry, how did you get in my head?" he asked slowly as he knelt on the pavement before the child and touched the boy's face. Harry's eyes widened, "Don't be silly, you're a character in a dream you're not real," he reasoned. The man smiled sadly and shook his head before touching the side of Harry's face, his hands were a little cold, but gentle and soothing. "No Harry, you aren't. I'm in London," he explained. Harry tipped his head to the side and looked at the man in his dream and shook his head, "Yes we are, and it's my dream," he reasoned. This made the man look sad as he ran his fingers through Harry's hair.

"Harry where are you?" asked the man gently, his red eyes were filled with curiosity and oddly a tenderness Harry didn't know of. "In my cupboard, where I always am when I sleep," he replied simply, it was odd to him that his own dream didn't recognize this. The man's eyes widened as he gripped the boy's shoulders, "You're where?" he asked in a panic, his voice was louder and he looked terrified. "My cupboard," replied Harry with a shrug. The man paled and was about to say something when Harry was quite literally dragged from his dream.

A large hand had wrapped around his ankle and the boy stared at it, "Uncle," he whispered in fear. "I called you several times freak, you were late getting back and I had to keep the Masons away long enough for you to finish the cake," he hissed. Emerald green eyes widened in terror as his uncle dragged him from inside the cupboard, Dudley stood before them and grinned darkly. "You're gonna get it, Freak," stated the small whale. Petunia was sitting in the living room paying no attention to what was happening in the hallway and quite honestly didn't care. Harry eyed the pair and had a feeling this beating might be his last. "I-I'm s-sorry," Harry stammered as he attempted to pull away from his uncle's massive hands. He had to get away, this was turning for the worst, and yet he couldn't his uncles hands were like vices, they kept him in place. Before he even realized it he was being slammed into a wall, his head met the plaster with a horrifying crack and pain shot through him. He grit his teeth, knowing that if he cried out it would only be worse. Harry felt a foot make contact with his ribs, his body immediately attempted to curl into a ball. Soon enough kicks were delivered hard, fast and relentlessly to the boy who was now curled up on the floor, praying for a way to escape. "You disgusting freak, you could have cost me my promotion," Vernon panted as he delivered a harsh kick to the boy's side before slamming his foot down on the boy's leg. Harry cried out in agony as he felt the man's full weight on his leg, and the snap which followed.

Tears were falling from his face as he felt something cold and sharp pressed against his neck. "Don't scream," Dudley said darkly as he cut Harry's large shirt away with the knife. Harry's eyes widened as he attempted to get away only for his uncle to pin him to the floor, his massive body crushing Harry's pelvis into the carpet of the hallway, "Oh no you don't," spat Vernon, there was even more anger and hatred in his voice than before, "We are going to make sure it doesn't happen again," he stated. Harry's eyes widened as he watched his uncle drag the knife across his chest, it was covered in scars from the time Vernon had thrown a pan of hot bacon grease at the boy. Harry bit his lower lip as he felt the cold and merciless blade pierce his skin. He could hear the heavy foot steps of his cousin vanish, leaving him with the boy's father. Each cut was deeper than the last and he wanted desperately to scream and cry. There was a breath and he could hear the harsh pants of Dudely when he returned, "Us this father," the boy said proudly. Harry opened his eyes and stared at the canister of salt, he didn't think there was anything that could make this worse, and yet it did. Vernon grabbed the container and without warning dumped it on Harry's stomach he screamed and wreathed in agony, he didn't care anymore. His stomach felt as though it were on fire.

'_Kill me, please,'_ were the only words he could think, _'just kill me.'_ He could hear his uncle's merriment before he felt a large hand clasp around his throat. _'Why?'_ asked another voice, this one wasn't Harry's it sounded like the man's from his dream. Harry felt the large hand on his throat apply more pressure, his head felt light from the lack of air and the blood now seeping out of his body, _'Hurts, please just end it,'_ the child begged. His body felt heavy and he couldn't hear anything going on around him, _'Harry?'_ the voice asked, yet he couldn't answer he was slowly slipping away. Perhaps he would find peace, _'Harry!'_ it shouted demandingly. He could tell it was worried, absently Harry thought it was nice that his conscience seemed to care what was happening. _'I just want it to end,'_ he whispered before slowly allowing his grasp to slip. Before he plunged into nothingness he heard the kind voice scream in agony, _'HARRY!'_

~~WL~~

Severus charged at the house only to hit the wards when he heard a blood chilling scream. His eyes widened as he began to pound on the wards, Lucius was with him casting every spell they knew at them in hopes that one of them would shatter them and allow them inside. Nothing was working, he couldn't fail Lily, not a second time. He continued flinging various hexes at the wards until a beautiful silver patronus slithered toward him across the sky, a basilisk. Severus froze and stared at the ghost like snake as it stoped before him. "They're trying to kill him. Get him out of there! Save Him!" the snake pleaded in Tom's voice. The voice trembled and Severus could tell that the Dark Lord was in agony which meant the boy was in grave danger. The Potion's Master took several steps back and was about to deliver a massive bombarda when the back door opened. He kept his black ebony wand raised as he watched a fat muggle carry a small bundle out the door, it was wrapped in a red blanket. The muggle himself reminded Severus of a walrus, he was covered in hair and extraordinarily fat, in many ways he was shocked that the man could even walk through the house without falling through the floor. The muggle grunted as he placed the bundle on the bed of ice cold snow, "Freak," he spat.

Severus felt a shiver run through him at the word, "No," he whispered as he watched the massive whale of a man go back into the kitchen and slice himself a large piece of cake before leaving Severus' view. He was about to blast the wards when he watched them flicker, his eyes widened as they fell like a ton of bricks. "No," he whispered in agony as he leapt over the fence and landed in the deep snow, usually he would have cursed at how deep it was, but he ignored it. He had to reach the bundle which now lay out in the snow. The potions master halted before the bundle and realized that the blanket wasn't always red, but it had been white. Onyx black eyes winded as he fell to his knees and slowly pulled the damp blanket from what he feared was a child. His hands felt the stickiness of blood as he pulled the coarse sheet away.

His mask shattered as he looked at the pale and nearly lifeless boy before him. He was skinnier than he realized, his face looked as though it were finally peaceful despite the ribbons of blood pouring from his head, over the scare and the side of his face. "Harry," cried Severus as he quickly placed his fingers on the boy's neck, only to see a large purpled hand shaped bruise forming. His eyes narrowed as he gently looked for the dim rhythm that told him a soul still inhabited the boy. That some how through this mess the boy had lived, his head hung and he closed his eyes, silently begging for the boy to live. Praying that he hadn't left the world yet, that someone in heaven would hear him, he would even settle for a demon if he had to. His eyes snapped open when he felt it, it was faint but there, that sacred rhythm. "I don't care what your headmaster thinks, I'm killing the niggles," hissed Lucius.

Servers was quick to start tending to the boy. There was no way that he would be able to move him if he didn't stabilize him. His mind was dealing as he reaching into his robes and pulled three Blood Replenishers, at this moment he was very happy he had made a fresh batch. "Luce I need you here, the muggles may come out," Severus stated sternly. He didn't need Lucius to enter Death Eater mode, it would only attract the Ministry and Dumbledore the last person Severus wanted to see. The blonde wizard paused and looked down at the boy who was unconscious, "Fine," he hissed. Severus nodded as he continued attempting to get enough of the bleeding to stop to move him. "He won't survive aparating, we will have to use the portkey to get to the mansion," Severus stated. Lucius nodded as he knelt in the snow and pulled out a skeleton key, it was large and dark black, the Malfoy crest was on the top of it. "What about-" before Lucius could ask the massive muggle stepped out of the house. "Who the hell are you?" he spat. Lucius spared no time and pointed his wand at the offensive muggle. "Sev, I really want to kill him," Lucius stated angrily.

"You, how the hell did you get in my yard," spat the walrus of a man. Severus tuned him out as he closed his eyes and whispered, "Expecto Patronum." His silver mist like doe appeared and listened as Severus whispered, "Tom, prepare the manor, the boy may not make it," before sending the doe away. "I should kill you, you disgusting muggle," spat Lucius with venom, Severus knew that there were several ways to irritated the Malfoy patriarch, and a muggle abusing a wizard was definitely on the list. "How dare you lay a hand on a wizard," he shouted, his wand was pointed between the man's eyes. Severus continued to do everything he could, "Luce, he's fading, we have to go," he stated. Lucius snarled before flicking his wand and hitting the muggle with a mild slicing hex, "We'll be back for you," he stated darkly before kneeling in the snow beside Severus and holding the key, Severus took one of the boy's hands and wrapped it around the key as well as holding the boy himself. Lucius wrapped an arm around the pair as well and with a crack they were gone.

~~WL~~

Tom stared in shock as he felt his heart pound, the boy had managed to get into his mind and looked as though he were not even five. He felt a pain shoot through his chest, it was his fault the boy looked the way he did and what was even more startling was that the boy slept in a cupboard. The choir which he had been listening to had long left and he was left standing in an empty street. His red eyes were filled with fear as he heard the silence in the back of his mind, he knew that he and the boy were connected, but the extent of the connection was what startled him. He had heard everyone of the boy's pleas, and every fiber of his being was screaming to run to the child, even though he didn't know what the boy was. Tom didn't have any fond memories of Christmas, he hated the holiday, it was a reminder of everyone else's happiness. Even now, he would lose something, the boy he could hear screaming in fear every night and every beating. A little ten year old boy, who he had made an orphan, yet couldn't remember the night in question and every time he tried his head hurt.

He stared at the spot where the choir had been and frantically paced, he had to get to the boy, he was frightened that both Severus and Lucius were too late. Before he could say a word he looked in the sky and stared at a silver mist like doe. His eyes widened at the sight, it was Severus' patronus. He held his hand out to the creature as he ran toward him, the spirit like creature halted before him, "Tom, prepare the manor, the boy may not make it," rasped the frantic voice of Severus. Tom's red eyes widened as he realized that he would lose the boy before he even understood the many mysteries the boy presented. He watched the doe dissolve into the air and dashed down the street, frantically looking for an ally to aparate from. His eyes were darting about and his heart was pounding in his chest as he looked for the one place he could use. His footsteps echoed in his ears and his breath grew ragged as the thought of the boy coming to him broken and dead assaulted him. He slid into an ally and looked around quickly before spinning on his heel to return to the manor.

He felt a familiar tug at his naval and the sensation of being squeezed through a tube, he may have disliked the form of transportation but he had to make sure the boy lived. Contrary to popular belief Tom did have a heart, even if it was as he believed to be several sizes too small. He landed in the parlor before both Narcissa and Draco. His chest was still heaving as he looked at them, "Have they come back?" he asked swiftly, not caring that his fear could be heard in his voice. The beautiful tall lady of the house was standing and her son was at her side staring in shock at his disheveled appearance. "Tom?" she asked with a hint of panic, if he was afraid she knew to be as well. It had to be for him to show such emotions, Tom was after all a Slytherin. "The boy, he's injured," Tom said quickly as he looked into the stern yet calm eyes of Lady Malfoy. Her black and blonde hair flowed down her shoulders and behind her, "What?" she asked quickly before looking at Draco, the young boy could sense the fear in the room, yet remained quiet.

"How?" she asked, "Was there a fight between us and the Order of the Pheonix?" Tom shook his head, "I don't know," he whispered. This wasn't true, he did know, he could remember the boy's pleas and feel his panic. In truth he had slipped into the boy's mind and saw the entire beating, it churned his stomach, but he didn't want to explain it to Narcissa, now wasn't the time. "They are coming here?" she asked in a more professional tone. Tom nodded, and looked at Draco, "He shouldn't be here when they arrive," Tome began only to be interrupted by a crack in the same room. He turned around swiftly and stared at the pair who were kneeling on the floor. His eyes immediately fell on the bundle the two men were holding, it was wrapped in a red blanket and dripping on the floor, a red pool began to form. Severus looked up, his eyes were filled with sadness and fear, "Help us," he rasped, the man was breaking and the young Dark Lord stared at the bundle before him.

Laying on the floor of the parlor of Malfoy Manor was a beaten and very broken little boy who was skin and bones with curly raven black hair and small features. He was smaller than he should have been and before the man realized it, Tom was on the floor with them attempting to figure out where the blood was coming from. Narcissa gasped and was about to send Draco away, only for the young blonde to dash out of the room. Tom figured the boy was scared and noticed out of the corner of his eye Nacrissa transforming a sofa into a bed for the boy. Severus gently picked the small child up and placed him on the white sheets of the bed. It wasn't until then that Tom really looked at the boy, "Is that?" Narcissa questioned. Tom ignored her as he slowly slipped his fingers under the frindge of Harry's bangs and lifted them to see a lightning bolt shaped scar on his head. He closed his eyes sadly for a moment, "Yes," he whispered.

Narcissa nodded and Tom knew it was time to let her work, she was about to cast a complex diagnostic when Draco returned, he was holding Severus' black bag and a bowl of water with towels. "I'm not going anywhere," he said simply as he handed Tom the bowl and Severus his bag. Oddly this made Tom smile at the young boy, perhaps there was hope, even if it was a sliver. A sliver of hope, was just enough to keep his mind from plunging into the depths of despair. He squared his shoulders and looked at the boy, "Narcissa, what are his injuries?" asked Tom, panicking would get him no where. She looked at the list which was now on the floor at her feet, he noticed tears slip from her eyes, "Merlin, he should be dead, he- how?" she asked as she shoved the sheet at Severus who was holding his hand out for it. "The most immediate injuries are a collapsed lung, broken ribs, internal hemorrhaging, a massive concussion and he has high levels of toxins in his blood," Severus read before picking up his wand. "We need to deal with the lung and hemorrhaging first," he stated simply.

Tom nodded, he had a proficient amount of skill when it came to healing, but nothing compared to Severus and Narcissa. Severus had taken classes when he decided to become a potion's master on not only herbology but also healing arts. Since a great deal of healing dealt with potions he took the classes, they also helped in desperate situations with a classroom filled with up to twenty 'dunderheads,' as he called them. Narcissa on the other hand worked as a privet nurse for pureblood families, she had a great deal of experience healing wounds caused by dark magic and even more removing it's traces. He watched as Severus began to work on the boy's lung, his movements were precise and not a second was wasted to even out the boy's rasping breaths. "Draco can you clean his face?" asked Narcissa. Draco nodded and dipped the cloth into warm water and began to wipe the blood away. His hands trembled slightly, yet he maintained a serious expression.

There was a flutter of wings and the sound of parchment falling to the floor. Tom looked over to see Lucius lazily summon it to his hand and examine it. "It's from the ministry," he sated as he popped the seal on the scroll and unrolled it. His eyes moved swiftly over the page and he smiled crookedly at the page. "It would appear that Fudge has learned of the boy's disappearance as well as Dumbledore. There is quite a stir occurring in the ministry and panic has begun to spread, I'm going to see what will come out of this. Tom what do you want done?" asked the blonde with an arched brow. Tom hummed to himself before smiling a little, he honestly thought it would be fun to watch the Minister of Magic and Dumbledore panic for a bit. "Nothing. Go to work, and listen, say nothing of the boy or where he is. I think our beloved headmaster should brew for a bit before we tell him," replied Tom. The truth was he wanted to get to know Harry and he couldn't do that without the boy there. Lucius nodded and turned quickly to leave for the Ministry, "He's still losing a lot of blood," said Narcissa after she had stopped the internal bleeding. They were about to remove the boy's clothing when Tom remembered what he witnessed, "Stop!" he shouted quickly, there was ice in his voice due to his anger. Severus and Narcissa looked at him in confusion.

"Draco, why don't you assist an elf in getting the room prepared for our guest," Tom suggested. Draco looked confused, his grey orbs stared at Tom as though he were insane, he understood that the boy knew Harry had to be alive to inhabit one of the rooms but he couldn't let a child see the damage this one had. Narcissa seemed to understand instantly, "Draco, see that Dobby sets up a sufficient room," she said swiftly. Draco looked at his mother before nodding and leaving the room silently. With a flick of Tom's yew wand the doors were closed and locked. "Why did we send my son away?" she asked once the boy was gone. Tom walked over to the bed and placed a hand on the boy's chest, it rose and fell softly and he whispered, "I'm sorry." He slowly took out a dagger, Narcissa's eyes widened and she was about to shout when she noticed he was cutting the boy's rags away. Blood clung to his clothing and the man took his time removing it gently, his hands became slick and crusted with the precious red liquid that was seeping from the action. He looked at his hands, the sight of blood on them made his stomach twist, he was responsible for this in a way. Tom continued to pull the shirt away and then threw it into the fire place. He heard a gasp from Narcissa, he looked over to see Severus' mask shatter as he looked at the boy wide eyed in shock, wondering just what kind of monster it took to do this to a child. Harry's chest was covered in scars, bruises and a vivid burn from what looked like grease. The word Freak had been carved into his stomach, it was more than enough to make someone wrench, on top of the fact that every single rib was visible, the boy had so little muscle it was frightening. "Who could do this to a child?" she asked as Tom began to remove the boy's pants and underwear, his legs looked just as bad as the rest of him, and he could only imagine what the boy's back looked like.

"A monster," replied Tom, the abuse Harry endured was worse than his own, scars of various ages were apparent, some were faded white lines, while others were swollen and infected. "The monsters he was placed with," Tom whispered as he gently touched the top of the boy's head. It was taking everything he had to not get Severus to take him to the muggles who hurt him and kill them himself. He was certain they wouldn't be missed. Narcissa's hand was over her mouth and he watched as Severus took over, he could tell she couldn't handle this, "He's a boy," she stammered, "He's Draco's age." Severus was silent as he opened a pair of tins and handed one to Tom. The cream smelt of peperment, lemons, and a little lavender. Despite the scent he knew that it was quick acting and was used on the cuts which marred the child's skin, it had and coagulative properties as well as the ability to make scars nearly vanish. Tom slipped his fingers into the cream and began to message a lavish amount on the word which had been carved into his skin after having cleaned it with the rag and water. He could see white crystals still pressed in it. "What are those crystals?" asked Narcissa as she dipped her fingers in the same tin that Tom held out to her. "Salt," replied Tom before Severus could even venture to guess. They had quite literally rubbed salt in the wound, which would explain the amount of pain he felt on his end.

Silence filled the room as they continued to apply salves to the boy to heal him, Severus had taken the bruise salve and was applying it generously to the boy's ribs. Tom hissed when he felt a wave of pain through his chest, his fingers loosened from around the tin and he clutched his ribcage. "Sev, pain reliever and dreamless sleep," the man commanded through gritted teeth, it was unbearable. The Potion's Master was quick to do as commanded, he watched as the man gently tipped Harry's head back and poured the pain relieve down his throat, his fingers gently message the boy's throat as he went to facilitate swallowing. Once the first was down he did the same to the second potion, no one questioned why Tom had commanded it, but he had a feeling it would come soon enough.

They had finished with the front of the boy and Severus levitated him in the air before gently turning him over and staring at the boy's back. The gruesome crossing of long angry scars covered his back, several were infected and they extended from his shoulder to hips. Tom stared at them for a moment, he could tell that his uncle used both the buckle and the leather of the belt and it seemed to vary based on his mood. Silently he began to plan just how he would kill and torture the muggles who had done this to the boy. A crucio was far too good for the pain they had inflicted on the boy, he was going to inflict pain but disfigure at the same time, which meant a great deal of fun with hexes. He shook his head to wave those ideas away and began to gently clean the boy's wounds on his back, "He's going to need antibiotics," commented Severus as he gently began resetting the boy's fingers, "I'm also going to have to re-break bones, but we need to seal the wounds up first," Severus stated. Narcissa simply nodded. All Tom knew was that Harry was in for a very long night and so was Tom.

He paused and looked at the determined look on Severus' face as he continued setting bones and rubbing salve on the boy's body. He hissed with sadness as he found new injuries and went to fixing them. He looked at Harry as though he were a lost son, Tom paused and realized that in many ways this was the son that Severus would never have, Lily's son. Red eyes shifted to Narcissa, the witch had put up her hair in a messy bun somewhere along the line, her beautiful robe was gone and the sleeves of her dress shirt were rolled up to her elbows, a sad but loving expression was on her face as she continued to heal the boy. Her hands were tender and soft as she did so, he could tell that even though she were uncomfortable she would do anything in her power to heal the broken boy. He felt slightly envious of Harry and Draco in a way, there had been no one at the orphanage to patch him up. He was alone, but not anymore.

It wasn't until then that he realized not a single member of the house would get sleep that night, they would all be waiting for Harry to open his eyes and wouldn't leave the boy's side until he did. He was about to say something when he noticed something clutched in his fingers, he had only paid attention to one hand and the other two seemed preoccupied with the boy's back. Tom slowly opened they boy's fist and stared at the beautiful flower in it, he gently removed it and ran his fingers around it. He could feel the faint hum of magic and the warmth which emanated from it. It felt familiar, the magic which had crafted it was very familiar, he turned it over in his hand and looked at the detailing on the Lily. He could see each petal and stamen, even the veins of the petals were there. He could feel a nervous gaze on his hands and he looked up to see the onyx eyes of his Potion's Master staring at the flower. "Lily," Tom whispered before looking down at the flower, "It's a beautiful gift Severus." Narcissa paused and looked at the pair only to see the glass flower glistening in the light.

Her grey eyes widened a fraction as she looked at the flower and then to Severus, the man wasn't known for his work with charms. "You?" she asked curiously. Severus blushed slightly as he capped the salve and pulled his wand to turn the boy back over. "Yes me," he replied as he gently turned Harry over and draped a heavy green and silver blanket over him. "It's wonderful Sev, we should make sure it's in Harry's room," she stated with a soft smile. Tom nodded and watched as Severus slowly picked the boy up, "Do you have any of Draco's old Pajamas?" asked Tom after a moment. Narcissa nodded and called for Dobby, "Please gather some of Draco's old clothes," she said sweetly. Dobby simply vanished and returned seconds later with a stack of green pajamas in hand. "Thank you, Dobby," she said with a smile before following Severus, who was carrying Harry. Tom couldn't help but look at the lily in his hands and attempt to remember just how the Potters had died that night. Somehow it was hazy it seemed like it were shrouded in fog and he sighed, all that mattered was the child who was alive, he shook his head and continued after the pair. It didn't due to dwell on the past.


	4. Chapter 3: Silent Night

_Author's Note: I wanted to post this Christmas Day but FF.N. was having issues so I decided to post it today. I will warn you in advance that Tom is OOC, if you didn't realize that. Well here is the chapter. I hope you enjoy. _

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**Chapter 3: Silent Night**

The air was nippy as the night and day rolled by, the snow was melting and the house was silent. It made an unusual sight to not see the inhabitants cheerful and bustling around with gifts. Even though the Malfoys were a reserved family, they were still very warm hearted toward one another and treated each other with affection. The tree glimmered in the darkness, a beacon of hope in a world now dominated by despair and concern. None of them had expected to bring home a battered boy, and no one wanted to revel in happiness until the boy was awake. After Severus had put Harry to bed and Narcissa dressed him in some of Draco's old Pajamas, Tom hadn't left the boy's side. Red eyes watched in the darkness over the small boy, protectively and hoping that somehow he would be forgiven. His fingers slipped into the young boy's soft and unruly black hair. It was just like all of the other Potter's hair, a birds nest which was impossible to tame. Yet it was what made them very attractive.

Tom crossed his legs and leaned on the arm of the chair, it was still and quiet as he looked at the boy. None of the Malfoys were celebrating, Severus was constantly brewing pain relievers and blood replenishers. The boy had lost so much blood and soon enough he had a nutrient potion added to the boy's diet. He had never seen the man so determined to right a wrong. He was a different person, yet maintained the same determined habits. Tom's eyes fell on the lily which was resting on the boy's nightstand. It was glimmering in the dim light from the moon which hung in the sky. Severus was nervous around him after he had figured out who had given it to the boy. Tom sighed, he knew at that moment who Severus was loyal to, Harry and the memory of Lily. He wasn't loyal to either side but the boy. Tom smiled softly, "You are so loved Harry," he whispered as he continued to run his fingers through the boy's hair. Narcissa had put him to sleep and the boy had yet to rouse. Oblivious to the world around him, Christmas came and went. Yet the manor was at a stand still. No one wanted to open gifts, no one wanted to open bottles of champagne, all they wanted to do was care for the boy.

Lucius had been working tirelessly to figure out what to do now, he didn't want Harry to return to those muggles, but didn't need the light to know that they had him. Tom wasn't interested in dealing with Albus, the man had done enough. He had done more than enough by doing nothing. Harry didn't have to suffer for so long, he shouldn't have. He didn't understand why he was upset, he was supposed to hate Harry, to kill the boy and yet he didn't want to. So much of Harry's upbringing reminded him of his past, that sad little boy in the corner who was hated, forgotten and hurt. Tom could remember how he was treated even after learning he was a wizard, teased, beaten and starved as though he were an animal, not a boy. He wanted love and received pain instead. Tom felt a pain in his chest as he looked at the slim form in the bed, too thin were the only words which came to mind.

The young Dark Lord gently ran his fingers down Harry's face and traced it, he could feel the boy's cheek bones through his hallowed cheeks. "I'm so sorry," he whispered sadly, his fingers paused as they pushed away the boy's fringe to reveal his scar. That familiar angry lightning bolt, it looked not even hours old, yet it was now ten years old. A decade since he had robbed a boy of his childhood. His long fingers traced the scar slowly and he heard the boy whimper, "Sh, Harry, you're safe and loved," he whispered before placing a kiss on the scar. The door of the room creaked softly causing Tom to snap to attention and look in the direction of the door. Standing in a pair of green silk pajamas with a plush dragon in his arms and a silk robe around him was a very familiar child. He had blonde hair like his father and a pair of beautiful grey eyes, he was small but beautiful. "Draco, what are you doing awake?" asked Tom softly, it was late and the man was well aware that Christmas Day was arriving soon. "I couldn't sleep," he replied, "Neither could Nangini or Shamus," he replied. Tom was confused for a moment until his familiar slithered in, _'How is the snakeling?'_ she hissed.

Tom smiled as he pat her head, _'Sleeping, he needs to rest,'_ he replied. Nagini slithered up the bed post of the four poster and curled up in the blue and green silk sheets, the bed was soft and he watched as she rested her head on the boy's chest, _'Careful, he's fragile,'_ Tom chided. Nagini simply hummed before looking at Tom as though he were daft. Tom then turned his attention to Draco and noticed the large slate colored Irish Wolf Hound at his side, Shamus. Lucius had bought the dog as a puppy for Draco and Tom had the pleasure of watching the pair grow up after he was resurrected. Over time he even had a decent relationship with the massive dog. He usually couldn't stand dogs, yet Shamus seemed to understand his place, at his Master's side and protecting the Master's young. He had earned a great deal of respect from Nagini and Tom as well. "Draco?" he asked again. The young blonde looked at him and hugged the dragon closer to his chest. "It's alright, Harry's just sleeping," Tom said softly as he held a hand out for the boy. Draco smiled anxiously, grey eyes fell on the bed before he entered the room, the dull light from the hallway seemed to sweep into the room in the form of a sliver. He watched as the youngest Malfoy stood before him and then looked at Harry, "Will he wake up soon?" asked Draco softly, there was a hint of curiosity in the boy's voice, he was timid in privet yet boisterous and commanding in public. Draco was like every Malfoy, they hid their emotions behind a mask of indifference and pride.

Tom sighed as he placed hand on the boy's head, he could remember when Lucius was nervous of allowing Tom near the child. At first Tom was insulted until he remembered how crazed he used to be, then he understood. "He will wake when he is ready," Tom said softly. He pat Draco's head before conjuring a plush green armchair for the blonde boy, "Would you like to wait with me?" he asked sweetly. Draco nodded as he curled up in the large chair, Tom then summoned a blanket from the closet and draped it over the boy. Shamus curled up at the boy's feet and rested his head on his front paws. Everyone was waiting, waiting for their guest to wake.

He sighed as he began to hum a familiar song, every year Narcissa sang it to close the evening of the party and send the children to bed. However, it felt odd to not hear it. Tom sighed as he began to hum softly. Draco was watching him and yawned, and Tom smiled. Singing would soothe both boys to sleep and part of his soul as well. He could remember the harp from memory and smiled Narcissa always enchanted on and with the flick of his wand he had a harp conjured and listened to it play. The familiar notes echoed through the manor and warmed his soul. He smiled as he listened to the harp pick chords and it's heavenly sound carry through the room. Draco's eyes began to droop as he slumped into the chair. Once the harp had gone through the first part of the chorus Tom smiled and began to sing, "Silent night, holy night," his voice was sweet, and deep. His eyes closed as he continued to sing, he had forgotten what it sounded like when he sang. He remembered singing to Draco once when he was child, Narcissa said he had a heavenly voice and every year bugged him to sing, only for the man to hand it off to her and tell her that her voice was sweater. "All is calm, all is bright. Round young virgin mother and child," he continued, his voice grew and strength, "holy infant so tender and mild." He opened his eyes and stared at Draco who was cuddling his dragon and then to Harry who relaxed, a small smile was on his face. He looked peaceful, more so than when he had first arrived. "Sleep, in heav-enly pe-ace," he sang holding each of the notes and supporting every tone with his diaphragm. "Sleep in heaven-ly peace," he finished softly as he ran his fingers through Harry's hair and pressed a kiss to the boy's head. The harp picked up the melody again and began to do several variations as he hummed softly. The enchantment lasted for hours as it echoed through the house. It was a Silent Night indeed he thought as he watched Nagini curl up on the bed and hiss a good night to Tom.

~~WL ~~

Every year all of the Malfoys would assemble, yet this year Narcissa had canceled the gathering, saying that they were ill and didn't wish to spread it to the other members of the family. Everyone accepted this, everyone except Abraxas Malfoy, Lucius' father. The man disliked the idea of canceling over illness and argued it was actually more important then to have family in the manor when the family was ill. He was wearing his green robe and a black suit, his blonde mustache and side burns were trimmed perfectly and his hair had been tidied. He wasn't like his son who had long hair and tied it back in Victorian fashion, he preferred the look of the late Victorians. His lips were pursed as he picked up the bag which held a number of gifts for his grand son Draco, as well as Lucius and Narcissa. He had even picked up a gift for Tom and Severus, as much as he disliked the potion's master, he couldn't deny Draco's godfather.

He grabbed a handful of floo powder from a silver stand and stepped into the fire before shouting, "Malfoy Manor, England the Main Foyer." With that he tossed the powder in the hearth and felt himself being pulled through the network, he drew a deep breath as he landed in the fireplace and quickly banished the soot. His eyes scanned the room and stared in confusion at all of the gifts still wrapped under the tree. It was Christmas Day and the sun was up, Draco should have torn into them by now and bragging about them. Yet they were all in tact. Abraxas cast a tempest and sighed, everyone should have been up, it was close to noon. He stepped out of the hearth and looked around in confusion, Narcissa, Lucius, Draco, Severus and even Tom were no where to be seen. He continued through the house with his wand drawn, something was very wrong, it was too quiet, almost somber, it were as though someone had died.

He continued through the house and paused outside of the doors of the parlor, he could hear the mummer of voice, "Severus, I'm doing what I can, the Minister is adamant about his placement and Dumbledore is only getting more and more suspicious," Lucius said after a moment. Abraxas was silent as he listened, usually he would burst in but something told him that he would learn more from simply listening, "Lucius, we can't send him back, they practically killed him. He's barely hanging on, he's a child," Severus reasoned, his voice was strained and he could hear the anger in it as well as something else, an emotion he didn't recognize. "Sev, I'm trying, Dumbledore is breathing down my neck the closer I get to the Minister and snoop around events pertaining to Potter," he said slowly, "It's not your fault he had us fooled."

There was silence and he listed to a hiss and a loud thump, "It is my fault, I should have taken him with me, I was there first, I should have taken the boy home," he said with venom. Abraxas' eyes widened, Potter, as in Harry Potter. The entire Wizarding World was in an uproar over the missing boy savior, and they were discussing him. "Sev," said Lucius softly, his voice was soothing, like his mother's. "Lily's son, I condemned him to hell for ten years because I was angry," Severus said with anger, now Abraxas understood that emotion, it was self loathing. A powerful emotion, one that he understood too well, "Sev, you were in shock," Lucius defended. Abraxas looked through the crack between the doors and watched his son place a hand on the dower man's shoulder, only for it to be shrugged off. "Severus Tobias Snape, you were in shock, and how would you know what Albus would do?" asked the firm yet light voice of Narcissa, Abraxas thought the woman was the perfect fit for his son, she was strong and spoke well.

There was silence and he watched the dower man slowly turn around and Abraxas stared in shock. The dark eyes of the Potion's Master were glistening as tears fell from them, they were slightly swollen and he could see the tracks those shards of the man's shattered soul made, proof of his pain. "I just thought," he said stiffly before wincing in pain and closing his eyes. At that moment Abraxas opened the door slowly and entered the parlor. Lucius and Narcissa stared at him with wide eyes before looking at one another. "We canceled the evening, Draco is," they began. Severus looked up and sneered, "Don't bother, he heard us," he replied. Abraxas felt a pull at his mind and realized Severus had just skimmed his thoughts, usually he would berate the man yet this time, he couldn't bring himself to kick the man when he was already in so much pain. What ever had happened with the boy who lived had affected them all. He looked around the room and noticed two people were missing, Draco and Tom Riddle. "What's going on here?" asked Abraxas harshly which caused his son to tense.

"You might want to sit for this," Lucius said after a moment before walking to the sideboard and grabbing a bottle of Fire Whisky. "You'll want a drink too," he stated as he pulled four tumblers and lined them up. Abraxas knew this had to be bad when Lucius was offering him liquor. Lucius didn't drink and neither did Severus and yet this time he was accepting a glass, Abraxas was no fool, he knew Tobias Snape was a drunkard who abused both Severus and his wife. He took the cool glass of amber liquid in his hand and took a seat in the vacant chair before his son. "Proceed," he commanded coolly. Lucius drew a deep breath before looking at Severus. His grey eyes searched black ones and Abraxas had a feeling that this was perhaps going to be one of the darkest stories he would hear, "Together," Lucius said. Severus nodded, his black greasy hair swayed as he did so.

"Two days ago Severus was asked by Albus to check on Harry Potter, apparently a woman who was watching the house was concerned. The Headmaster stated that there would be nothing wrong and that we were simply to put the woman's mind at ease," Lucius began, already Abraxas had a feeling that this was going to get worse, Albus was always lying about something, he could remember his school days when Albus was only a Professor. The man had spread that Tom was the Dark Lord to come inadvertently and claimed the position of savior for supposedly defeating Grinderwald, when it was actually a young and desperate Tom Riddle. "Once I learned of this Severus and myself when to see Tom, and ask what he wanted us to do," Lucius continued and looked at Severus who had taken a swig of Fire Whiskey. Of course they went to Tom Riddle, they were friends and to be honest Tom was always level headed. "Tom asked us to check on the boy, after an unusual incident, he had doubled over in pain and claimed that someone was hurting the boy. He didn't know how it worked but somehow they were connected, he instructed us if things were too violent to have the boy removed," Severus had picked up where Lucius left off, he seemed to have gotten himself back together at this point.

"We went to Surrey, apparently Albus had placed the boy with muggles, at first he looked like a little boy who was on an errand but thin," Severus paused as he looked pained into his glass of whiskey, "He was getting crackers when it started snowing. We spoke for a bit, he was very polite but-" Severus looked pained as he clutched his glass and Abraxas waited quietly, he had a feeling this was hurting Seveurs the most, "it was awkward, since he was too polite. We followed the boy." The Potion's Master fell silent as he ran his finger around the rim of the glass. Lucius placed a hand on Severus' shoulder, "We learned that he was treating like a house elf, we fought against the wards in an attempt to get to the boy, only for them to fall on their own," Lucius said softly. He tensed as he gripped Severus' shoulder and looked to his wife, she was pale and looked as though she had seen the unspeakable. "We found him, he," Lucius paused as he looked for the right word, usually he would yell at him but his stomach was twisting, "he was dying, the muggles beat him."

Abraxas turned pale and placed the tumbler on the table as he attempted to get his anger under control. His hands were clenched, "Muggles harmed a Wizard?" he asked angrily. Children were treasured in the Wizarding world, since a number of pure bloods couldn't even bear children they were treated with love and affection, they were precious and few. He had spanked Lucius when he was a child but never beat him, "They starved him, beat him and treated him as though he were a House Elf, he was ordered to make a cake and even handled knives," Severus said softly. Abraxas felt his blood boil as he looked at them, they were all nervous, "You didn't think to alert the authorities!" he shouted furiously. Lucius paled and looked at him, "You think we wouldn't if we knew it would help! Albus has control of the Wizingmont and is now making Fudge bend to his will!" shouted Lucius as he gestured harshly to his house crest, "I can't fight back, Albus has his fingers in every pie and made it clear he wouldn't move the boy, no matter the cost! He was dying, father! I couldn't just let him bleed out in the snow!" Lucius roared. Abraxas was taken back as he watched his son, "I wanted to save him, he's a child, he should have never been brought into this war! Children are meant to be loved!" he shouted, his voice was firm and unwavering; Abraxas felt a smile curve his lips his son finally sounded like a Lord. "They are," replied Abraxas, "Where is the boy?" he asked, "I will decide what to do after seeing him."

Narcissa rose from her seat and placed the tumbler on the table, "I'll show you, Tom is with him, Draco is in bed," she explained. He followed her up the stairs, she was quiet and seemed nervous, then again he was the only person Lucius seemed to fear, other than Tom, his friend. He was there the night the man had been brought back and still had a tough time looking at the twenty year old. He continued down the hallway, each portrait bowed as they walked by, always formal and regal, she paused outside the door and stared at it in confusion. "Tom had it closed," she whispered, "Harry is sleeping, he was very badly injured please don't wake him." Abraxas nodded as Narcissa pushed open the thick wooden doors which lead to the Guest Room. His eyes widened as they fell on the sleeping form of his grandson curled up in a plush chair, wrapped in a blanket with Shamus at his feet and a dragon in his arms. He slowly walked into the room and noticed the form in the bed, it was smaller than Draco, which confused him, Potter's child should have been the same age. His face was peaceful but he could tell the boy was exhausted, one of the child's hands was visible and he stared at the scar on the back of it, and his worn fingers. He drew closer to the bed and cautiously sat on the edge, Nagini's head rested on the boy's head and it was then he noticed the other small hand was being held by Tom's. He stared at Riddle for a moment, he hadn't looked like that since they were in school.

He stared at the sight, the man supposedly stole Harry's childhood and yet here he was holding the boy's hand. He gently slipped his hand down the bed and gripped the edge of the blanket, "Don't, you don't want to see," said Tom sleepily. His red eyes were filled with sadness and dread, "Why?" asked Abraxas after a moment. Tom looked at the boy in the bed and whispered, "His are worse than mine, by far." Abraxas shuddered, he had seen what the muggles had done to Tom, to think the boy was worse made him even more upset. "How long has he been asleep?" asked Abraxas as he placed hand on Harry's head to check his temperature, he didn't have a fever which was a good thing. "Since his arrival, he was unconscious when we found him, he was in so much pain it was better to keep in asleep," Tom explained.

Abraxas looked at his grandson and then to Tom, "He refused to open his gifts or leave Harry's side until he was awake," Tom explained. Clearly Draco liked Harry, even if he had yet to actually meet the boy. Abraxas looked in the doorway to see Narcissa waiting, "I suppose I should leave you two to it, and check on Lucius," he explained. Tom nodded as he watched Abraxas leave. Something wasn't right, not only was Harry placed with Muggles but Tom was acting oddly, protective, which was something Tom didn't do naturally. What ever it was, Tom felt the need to protect the boy. He hummed, usually he would avoid this kind of drama, but something was nagging at him, he didn't understand how a man who had taken the boy's parents could sit in a chair and hold that child's hand. It made no sense.

~~ WL ~~

There was silence in the house as Tom looked out the window; Dumbledore had done the one thing he hadn't anticipated. He had enough of the games, the tricks and the lies. He knew something wasn't right and he had to stop it. The key was in his memory or lack there of, if he could figure out just what happened then he could make a move, there was one thing he had that the Headmaster did not, Harry. He had sat beside the boy's bed all night, refusing to leave his side, he had to figure it all out, part of him didn't want to hurt Harry. He closed his eyes for a moment and attempted to recall that Halloween Night, only to be met with the same blank.

Tom was skilled at mind magics, and he knew someone had altered his memory, the question was who and why. He looked at Harry and sighed, he had to figure this out, Albus was ahead of him and he didn't like the idea of a child being brought into the war as a weapon. _'Master, he smells like you,'_ Nagini hissed. Tom waved his hand lazily as he attempted to think about when Dumbledore had gotten him alone and could even perform the spell when it registered what the serpent had just said. _'What?'_ he asked as his eyes narrowed at the massive shimmering green snake on the bed. '_He smells like you,'_ she pointed out. Tom looked at Harry in confusion and then the snake, '_You are simply picking up on the fact that I held him for a bit and have been around him,'_ Tom remarked as he leaned back in the chair. The snake shook her head and huffed, _'You are so difficult, when have I ever lied?'_ she asked with a hint of irritation.

Tom groaned and rubbed his temples, _'Nagini you are a prolific liar,'_ he stated bluntly. The snake hissed in a way which was similar to a laugh. _'You deserve to be tricked, because sometimes you think you're so clever, it's a reminded,'_ she commented. Tom glared at the serpent, _'We will wake him if we keep this up.'_

'_Too late,'_ came a sleepy hiss.

Tom and Nagini paused and looked at the boy who was now opening a pair of tired emerald green eyes. "What did you just say?" asked Tom in shock, he thought he was the only Parselmouth. Harry looked at the stranger with wide eyes and pulled back in fear, "You were in my dream!" he exclaimed. Draco leapt to attention and stared at the boy in the bed, his finger was raised as he pointed at the man. Tom tilted his head to the side, 'Master he speaks!' Nagini exclaimed as she wriggled with excitement. _'Of course I speak. Now, where am I? This isn't a dream and why is there a snake in my bed,'_ he demanded.

Draco's mouth popped open, "No way, he speaks Parseltongue too?" he asked. Harry stared at Draco and asked, "What? No I speak English." At this point Severus, Lucius, Narcissa and Abraxas had arrived. "No you were hissing a second ago," he said simply. Harry paled and stared at Tom, "You, you're not real," he stammered. There was silence in the room as Harry pulled away. Tom's eyes widened as he stared at him, he watched the boy's chest move rapidly, and his eyes shifted. "Who are all of you? Where am I? My uncle will kill me if I'm not back in time to make dinner," he said quickly. Tom watched as it whizzed through the air to the man's palm which was behind his back. "Harry," Severus said simply, "it's alright." The room was still as Severus knelt before the child.

~~ WL ~~

Severus stared at the child before him, it took everything he had to not take the child into his arms and stop the pain he saw in Lily's precious green eyes. "Harry, look at me," he whispered softly. Harry shook his head, he was terrified, and there was nothing Severus could do, he had to get the boy to take the calming draught. He held the vial in his hand and looked at the boy, he remembered what it was like to be told by an adult he didn't know that he was safe, when every part of him was screaming to run. "Harry, it's alright," Severus said gently as he placed a hand on the child's head, "Look at me." Harry tensed, and shook his head, clearly afraid that a punishment would follow this action, even though Severus had asked him to.

He remembered the first time he was found by an adult, it was Mister Evans who had found him. He was terrified, Tobias had broken his nose, there was blood everywhere and it hurt. Severus had climbed out the window just to get away from the man, only to be found, but a tall and gentle red haired gentleman named Richard Evans, Lily's father. At first Severus was terrified, he had only been hurt by older people. He remembered shirking away from the tall man in fear until a pair of doe like green eyes appeared from behind her father's legs. She had fiery red hair, bright green eyes and a kind smile, his Lily. She had saved him so many times, and he trusted Mister Evans because of her. He looked over his shoulder and pointed to Draco. The boy pointed at his chest only for Severus to nod. The young blonde sought his father's permission only to receive a nod. The young blonde knelt on the floor beside Severus and looked at the trembling boy, "Hi, I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy," he said softly with a smile as he held out his hand. Severus smiled a little at Draco's manners even toward the scared boy he was still kind and sweet. Harry lifted his head and looked at Draco nervously and then the boy's out stretched hand. He eyed it for a while, unsure of whether or not he could even touch the boy. Severus shivered internally, of course the boy was terrified. Draco dropped his hand and asked, "What's your name?"

Draco naturally knew the boy's name, but Severus had a feeling it was to help the boy calm down, being in a room where everyone knew your name only equated to bad things. Harry looked up and replied, "Harry, Harry Potter," he was timid and frightened, Severus could tell that the boy was going to faint if he didn't calm the child down. Discreetly the man slipped the phial into Draco's hand, Draco would know what it was, he had spent the day with Severus brewing. While Draco couldn't case a spell or charm there was nothing denying him learning potions. "Nice to meet you," Draco said warmly and smiled, Severus had to hand it to the boy, he knew how to be charming. Harry simply nodded and looked at his feet, eye contact was clearly something he wasn't allowed to make.

"This is my uncle Severus, he looks scary but he's a nice guy," Draco said as he nudged Severus' arm to prove a point. The man cracked a smile at the boy's antics and made a mental note to have him show it a little more. Harry looked up nervously at Severus and then to Draco. "Harry I need you to take this, and then we can talk. It will make you feel better," Draco said as he held the phial out to the boy. Severus smiled gently, he knew how convincing another child could be, Harry's hand trembled as he attempted to hold the phial only to scowl. "Harry?" asked Draco curiously. Severus watched the child and noticed that he was in pain, he wandlessly and silently summoned a second phial and held it out to the boy, "This will help with the pain," he said softly, he didn't realize that the boy's fingers hadn't finished healing. Harry looked at the phial and eyed it as though it would bite him. Draco sighed as he pulled the stopper from the calming draught and held it up for Harry to see. "Watch," he said simply.

Severus was confused for a moment until he watched the blonde lift the phial to his lips and take a sip of the draught, he made a funny face and wrinkled his nose. "It tastes horrible, but it helps," he said after a moment and held it out to Harry. Severus sighed, he had forgotten the most basic principle, "monkey see, monkey do." Harry too the phial in his hand and tipped it back, the potion fell into the boy's mouth, and Severus watched his expression twist into one of disgust. Draco took the other phial and held it out to the boy, "For your fingers," he said simply. Harry took the phial and asked, "Where am I?"

Draco smiled and sat on the floor cross legged, he heard his father snort and he shook his head. "My house, Malfoy Manor in Manchester," he said with a wide grin. Emerald green eyes widened, "Manchester?" he asked slowly. Obviously he knew the distance between the two and Draco nodded, "Yes, you should really take that, your fingers look like they hurt," he said simply. Harry tipped the phial against his lips and drank it. He seemed to ease before looking at Draco and then to Severus. "Do my Aunt and Uncle know where I am?" he asked.

Silence filled the room, and Severus looked at Tom for guidance. Harry had just asked the toughest question. "No," Tom replied, "and you won't be returning." Harry stared at Tom with wide and disbelieving eyes. His lips parted as he whispered, "Really?" he looked as though he had just receive the greatest Christmas gift of all time, "But who would want a freak?" he asked in confusion and he slowly uncurled and scratched his head. Severus felt as though someone had stabbed him in the heart, that word, he remembered Petunia shouting it at him. "Who called you that?" asked Severus slowly, his eyes were filled with sadness, he knew who it was. Petunia had always been jealous of Lily, and yet part of him hoped that it wasn't her. "My Aunt and Uncle, she said no one could love a freak. We aren't meant to be loved or touched. We should just do as we are told, we are a waist of space and bellow normal people," he replied, it was a well rehearsed and the heart breaking answer. Severus fought his instincts to clutch the boy to his chest and tell him that he war wrong. That he was loved, loved by so many people.

Before he could act Draco had wrapped his arms around the boy and whispered, "No you're not, you're just like us, you should remember Uncle Sev, you met him in the park," Draco said softly. Harry looked at the boy in confusion his eyes roamed around the room until they stopped. Severus turned his head only to see the glass flower fly across the room, and land in the boy's palm, a smile of happiness curved the boy's lips. "You gave me this," he said softly. Severus was shocked by the display of magic, Draco had done a few things, but never summoned an item to himself. "I did, you met Lucius as well, my friend and Draco's father," he said softly. Lucius walked over and knelt on the floor behind Severus and smiled. "Hello Harrison," he greeted warmly. Harry's eyes widened as he remembered the two, "You were the one! Severus told me to throw a snowball at you to help destroy your robes," said Harry with wide eyes.

Draco's brows lifted in confusion as he stared at the pair, Severus groaned, that wasn't one of his better moments, he had forgotten that the only people who knew his antics were Tom, Abraxas and Narcissa, Draco had no idea how they were when they were children. He sighed and brushed his hair out of his face, "Why would you tell him to do that?" asked Draco, it sounded as though it was a forging concept. Severus sighed and looked at the heir, "Simple, he hit me," he replied. Tom chuckled in the corner, "Draco, they have always been like that," he commented. Severus glared at Tom who was grinning broadly.

Harry looked at Tom and asked, "You were in my dream, but you're real. Who are you?"


	5. Chapter 4: Late Christmas Morning

_Author's Note: Sorry for posting this so later, I promise to catch up. I got trapped at work. Anyway I want to thank all of you who are following this story, there are so many of you I can't write enough thank you notes. Honestly, I didn't think that was even possible. Those of you who are also adding this littlework o your favorites, no I didn't forget you or those of you who are following me as an author. Honestly I'm honored that all of you have shown such an interest in this story. Dont' worry it'll pick up pace soon, I just have to finish the background work since I'm making several changes. _

_Happy New Year. _

* * *

**Chapter 4: Late Christmas Morning**

Silence, it fell in the room as the boy's simple question hung above them. Tom was quiet as he looked at the boy, he had nod idea how to answer. He couldn't tell the boy that he had murdered his parents. He couldn't tell the boy that he had meant to kill him before. He looked at the small child, his red eyes settled on the child as he looked at Severus. The dower man looked panicked; clearly he was hoping that he wouldn't tell the boy the truth, that he would hold off. Tome slowly rose from his seat and looked around the room, Lucius and Abraxas looked just as nervous as Severus did. It was as though what he said next would change everything, then again it would since now he would have to explain to not only the boy but the occupants in the room. Tom slowly walked over to where Severus and Lucius were and knelt on the floor.

Tom was dressed in simply a pair of slacks a black shirt and a long black robe. His robes pooled about him and he was taller than the child, at that moment he understood so much of the pain, so much anger and sadness he wanted to simply hold the child close and tell him it was over. Harry's Avada Kadavra green eyes looked at him nervously, assessing whether or not he was a threat and Tom gently probed the child's mind. He was terrified yet curious at the same time. 'Will he hurt me?' was the only question running through his head. "Hello Harry, I'm Tom Marvolo Riddle, but you can call me Tom or Marvolo, which ever you prefer." Harry looked at Tom cautiously he seemed at a loss as to what to do. "Am I in trouble?" he asked after a moment. The young Dark Lord sighed as he shed his robe, it was as though it were a costume and as he did so the whole notion of being the darkest wizard of the age seemed to leave his mind. "No you aren't, and I won't hurt you," he said softly as he slowly leaned forward and draped his robe around the boy who was shivering. He watched the black fabric swallow the child and smiled, Harry was cute wrapped in his robe and he watched the child stare at him as though he were a mystery. Harry tentatively touched the black fabric and his eyes widened, "It's made of lambs wool and spider silk," he explained. The child attempted to take it off when Tom shook his head, "It's a bit cold to be roaming around this house in pajamas," he said gently. Harry blushed but nodded, he could tell the child had questions.

"Harry you can ask questions, we will answer them," Tom said soothingly, he hadn't heard his voice sound like this since the day he found Severus in pain. It seemed to shock all of the occupants of the room to remember that Tom actually did posess such a voice, "How come you are in my dreams?" asked Harry slowly, "and who's snake is that?" Tom chuckled, he should have known that the about the massive snake in the room. He also managed to ask the one question he didn't know the answer to. "I don't know how I am in your dreams, you and I have a connection, I just don't know how or why. The snake however," he smiled and waved Nagini over, he watched the large green shimmering serpant slither over gingerly, "This is my familiar Nangini, want to say hello?" he asked curiously as the snake coiled around his legs and held her head up for him to pet her. Harry stared at the man and the snake, _'Hello,'_ Harry hissed. Nagini blinked and snapped to attention she slowly held her head out in hopes that the boy would pet her.

Tom chuckled at her behavior and looked at Harry, _'It's okay, she won't bite,'_ he hissed. He decided to address the fact that the boy could speak parceltonge later. He watched a shaky hand extend to the serpent and Nangini bowed her head lower he could tell she was excited. Harry gently touched her head with the tips of his fingers and he watched the boy's face light up. _'She's smooth! Not slimy and very pretty,'_ he hissed in excitement as he gently ran his hand down her scales. He was surprised by how gentle Harry was with the massive snake, most people would have run, and yet Harry pet her as though she were a large dog. Nagini was patient with the boy as he pet her and he felt her slowly move from around him and sit between them, _'I like him, he's kind,'_ she gushed. Harry gasped and stared at the snake with surprise, his expression was priceless, 'Thanks Nangini I was going to explain his gift later,' he hissed with a hint of irritation. The massive snake snapped her head toward him and looked at him, _'You were the one who suggested that he pet me, he also said I was pretty! Most people just scream. Was I not supposed to say anything?' _she asked. Tom groaned and shook his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose. _'At the moment, no. I wanted to get some food in him and get him in warm clothes before you shocked him,'_ Tom explained and sighed with exasperation. He forgot how difficult she could be. Nangini glared at him and flicked her tongue at him before twitching her tail, she only did this when she was irritated with Tom. _'Snakeling has questions and is scared. I just want to protect him. You are so dense sometimes Tom,'_ she replied.

Harry giggled and looked at the pair, 'Is she always like this?' he asked as he smiled at them. Tom looked at him and replied bluntly, _'Yes, she's always like this. Just wait since you can speak to her she'll be stuck to you like glue and you'll be begging me to collect my familiar.'_ Harry giggled again and shook his head he could tell that oddly his bickering put the child at ease. Severus had gone tense from the hissing and remember that there were only three beings in the room that could understand their conversation. "Harry, I think we should get you in some warmer clothes and get some breakfast," said Tom after a moment, which seemed to put the room at ease again, he made a mental note to look into why the boy could speak to the snake, he shouldn't have been able to the Potters had none of Salazar's blood.

Harry paled at the mentioning of food and Tom had a feeling he wasn't going to like why. "Don't worry, you'll never go back to those foul people called your relatives," Tom said gently as he rose from the floor, he was about to hold out his hand when he noticed Severus was extending his, he looked as though he were looking at the most precious gift in the world. Tom suddenly remembered that the boy was the only evidence that Lily had even lived and allowed Severus this moment. He watched the boy slowly take the Potion's Master's hand and rise from the floor, his other hand was clutching his robes so that they wouldn't fall off the boy. Draco was beaming with delight as he looked at Harry, "You missed Christmas but we decided to put it on hold, come on, let's get dressed so we can go down to breakfast," said Draco with excitement.

Tom noticed that the boy wasn't thrilled about Christmas, he wasn't a fan either, but he had a feeling that the boy would like his gifts. He had run to a few shops which he knew were open and purchased a few books, some toys and clothing. As a child he didn't have much but he didn't want Harry to face that. He could remember Christmas Eve, he had left Harry's room for a bit to find Severus sitting on the floor of the living room, there were piles and piles of photos surrounding him, he looked as though he had dumped all of his memories on the floor and was sifting through them, one by one. Tom had leaned in the doorway and watched as the man began to copy some of them magically, some were taken with a muggle camera while others a magical one. With each photo Severus was gentle and tender, as though he were handling the woman himself. She was such a large part of the man, which he didn't realize Harry would cause him to open that dreaded box and look through it again. The box on the floor beside him was the one box that contained both his happiest memories and the saddest. He watched the man quietly slip each photo in a brown leather album, it was covered with a red vine design and he drew a deep breath before leaving quietly, he had a feeling he would see the album under the tree.

Tom was snapped from his thoughts when Lucius nudged him and whispered, "We should leave so Harry can change," he suggested. Tom blinked before nodding and turned to Harry, "Severus will be outside, he will show you to the dinning room," he said as he looked at Severus who simply smiled a little and nodded, he could tell that smile meant the world. He left the room with Draco trailing behind him, Tom turned and looked at the boy who was smiling, clearly happy to have another young boy in the house. Lucius was at his side and looked at his beaming son. "Draco?" asked Lucius curiously and Tom knew what the boy was thinking, he didn't even have to use Legilimency to figure it out. "Do you think he will like the presents?" he asked as he looked from his father to Tom. He could tell the boy was both anxious and nervous. Tom sighed as he looked at the short blonde, "Draco, I'm certain he will love them, he's never had a gift." He paused when he realized what he had just said and noticed how Narcissa, Draco, Lucius and Abraxas paled, "What?" asked Narcissia in shock her eyes were wide and she looked beyond upset. "Not one gift?" Tom shook his head sadly and continued, "I don't think he's ever received a present, or even a hug."

The four Malfoys froze and looked at him and then the door they had left, he could tell that they were all going to make a great effort to ensure that Harry had a beautiful Christmas, his real first Christmas. He couldn't be upset with them for that, after all the boy needed to be shown love, all he knew was hatred. Tom sighed as he looked them over and said simply, "I'm off to freshen up, I'll see you in the dinning room," he turned on his heel and smiled as Nangini slithered behind him. Silently he vowed to show the boy that he deserved love and to make him smile more. Harry's bright smile was in his memory as the boy touched Nangini, he loved seeing the child look free from pain and fear, even if it was for a moment. Just for a moment, Harry had been Harry, and he wanted to make those moments last a lifetime.

~~WL~~

Harry waited until they had all gone before opening the wardrobe and finding a soft cashmere sweater, it was forst green and looked very warm, there was a pair of black and silver pinstriped slacks hanging with it. Harry had only see clothing like this when he washed his Uncle's, never in his size. He slowly pushed through the racks and realized that everything in the wardrobe was made of high quality fabrics and cut in the finest of fashions, there were even a few suits hanging in the back. He slowly pulled the sweater and ran his fingers over the soft and warm fabric, he loved the color but was worried he would be yelled at for not yelling his clothing, although he couldn't find it. He was even dressed in silk pajamas, he hummed, they had all been nice to him and part of him wondered if they really wouldn't hurt him.

Harry grabbed the black and silver pinstriped pants and set them on the bed as well as the v-neck green cashmere sweater. He slowly took off the night shirt, he didn't trust adults, they only hurt him. He knew that from experience, they always hurt him, they never helped him and part of him wondered if those people would be different. Draco seemed nice, he honestly looked as though he wanted to help him, which was a first. Even other boys found it fun to pick on him. Harry slipped off the pajama shirt and froze, he should have been in pain. Suddenly he remembered the beating he had received and walked over to a long mirror, his eyes widened when he looked over his shoulder. All of his scars were gone. It was as though they hadn't even existed, even the old ones had vanished. He turned around and looked at his chest, the burn was gone, so was the word which his uncle had carved into his stomach. He slowly reached out and touched the mirror, with disbelief and watched the mirror do the same. The glass was cold and smooth beneath his fingers. "How?" he asked slowly before lowering his hand, he had always had scars, the only one that remained was the one on his head, the lightening bold scar he had for as long as he could remember.

He slowly turned and looked at the bed, they must have healed him but he couldn't understand why, he was just a freak. He didn't deserve healing or to be taken care of, or at least that was what his family had said. He slowly slipped the sweater over his head and then slipped off the pants, only now did he realize that even his underwear was made of fine cotton and actually fit him. Harry slowly slipped into the slacks and stared at his reflection, he looked very different in clothes that fit well, the sweater was a little lose, but not falling off of him. He looked around and found a pair of wool socks sitting in a drawer and slipped them on. He stared at his reflection and marveled at himself, this was the most presentable he had ever looked. Harry slowly opened the door to find the man named Severus standing there, he was smiling gently and held his hand out to him. For the life of Harry he couldn't understand why people kept letting him touch them, Freaks were dirty and that was why Petunia never gave him a hug, much less hold his hand.

Harry slowly took the man's hand and stared at the way they looked together, Seveurs had large hands with long slender fingers, they were calloused making them a little rough, yet they were gentle. "Shall we?" asked Severus softly as he looked at Harry with a questioning gaze. He had never been asked if he were ready to go, he was usually pushed and yet this man was willing to wait. Harry nodded and walked down the hallway with Severus, he stared at the man who was dressed in all black, his hair was long but this time looked as though it had been washed. He admired the man's alabaster skin and realized that he looked far more relaxed now than when he had in the park. "Don't worry about the table, you'll be sitting beside Draco and Tom," he said with ease as he pushed open a large and beautifully carved pair of mahogany doors.

His eyes widened when he noticed the light which flooded the room, while the table was made of a dark cherry, it seemed welcoming and soothing. The walls were a beautiful green and were covered in paintings. His eyes fell on the high glass windows with large midnight blue drapes, there were silver chords holding them back. From the ceiling hung a beautiful chandelier, it was covered in garland, bows, and a few poinsettias. He could smell cinnamon and pine in the room and stared at the candle holders as well as the center piece, they were a beautiful red, which seemed odd in the room with only dark and soothing colors but not unwelcome. He froze, he didn't fit in this world, let alone at this table. All of the occupants of the house were dressed in beautiful clothing, Draco was wearing a blue robe with a dress shirt, tie, slacks, and vest, he looked as though he belonged to a prep school. Lucius, Narcissa and Abraxas were all dressed in dress clothes, but none of them looked as surreal as Tom.

Sitting at the head of the table, with an empty chair to his left was the man from his dreams. He was wearing a silver suit with a black shirt and a black and silver tie, his black robe fell from his shoulders and he noticed the man's wavy hair was styled once again. A glint of gold caught Harry's eye and he stared at the ring on the man's finger with a black stone in it's grasp. "Good morning Hadrian," greeted Narcissa with a smile. Harry paused and looked at her in confusion, Hadrian, no one had ever called him that, it was always just Harry. "I apologize but what did you just call me?" he asked curiously, he was honestly confused and looked at her as though she had lost her mind. "Hadrian, that is your name, isn't it?" asked Narcissa after a moment. He blushed after he realized that she was using his full name, not his nick name. "Yes, I'm sorry," he replied sheepishly, he really didn't belong here. A chuckle left Narcissa as she shook her head, "No harm no foul," she replied smoothly which seemed to put Harry at ease a little. Draco was watching Harry curiously, he could tell that the blonde wanted to spend more time with him and was honestly interested in chatting away. "Good morning," he said after a moment before looking at the only other empty seat after Severus had sat beside Draco on the other side. He slowly walked down toward where Tom sat and remained standing for a moment, he could feel their eyes on them and knew they were confused.

"I want to thank all of you for helping me, saving me and taking care of me," he said slowly, he was nervous as he said this, he had never said thank you toward someone who showed him genuine kindness. "Not at all Hadrian, it's out job to protect you and take care of you," said Tom smoothly. Harry looked up to see those familiar red eyes looking at him, Tom really did look like one of the men Petunia would fawn over. He nodded before looking at the chair, they clearly wanted him to join them. Harry slowly pulled out the seat and settled down for a moment. He felt awkward, as though he were the piece that didn't fit. They were prefect, honestly picture perfect, all of them dressed to impress, each of them smiling and beautiful. Yet, he wasn't, he wasn't any of those things.

Lucius had launched into a conversation with Severus about illegal potion's ingredients which interested Harry, he just couldn't keep up. "I'm telling you that they are charging far too much for Dragon Liver, I understand that its to protect the dragons but can't they make it a little more affordable?" Severus asked with a groan. Lucius chuckled as he smiled and looked at the man, he looked younger as he did this, "Sev, you are one of the most sought after potion's masters of the century, and you have your own line of potions. You're rich, even though your fortune is small compared to mine it's still an impressive size," Lucius stated as a fact. Harry listened to a number of people chuckle around the table as Severus' face twisted into a sneer, "Still it's not affordable for those of us who aren't me." Lucius leaned back in his chair and quirked a brow, "Oh?" he asked as he picked up a scone, "I was under the impression that you were still a frugal bastard."

Harry's jaw practically dropped when he heard this, none of his relatives cursed like that, except Vernon when he was really angry about Harry. Before Lucius could say another word he was smacked in the head by both his wife and his father making Harry smile. The blonde Lord simply rubbed the back of his head and asked, "What was that for?" Tom pointed at Lucius and replied, "Language, and I thought you were a Malfoy, yet you have the mouth of a sailor." Harry turned red as he suppressed his laughter, Lucius looked irate and crossed his arms before grumbling. Harry looked over at Tom only to notice that Nangini was coiled at the man's feet, he hadn't noticed her before. _'Good Morning,'_ he hissed. The snake lifted her head and blinked sleepily, _'Morning,'_ she hissed, although it sounded more like a groan. _'What's the matter?'_ asked Harry as he watched the beautiful green snake uncoil herself. She flicked her tongue before responded, _'It's morning.' _Tom chuckled and looked at Harry, no one else at the table seemed to notice that the boy was carrying on with the snake except Draco. _'She's nocturnal, morning's aren't her thing,'_ Tom explained.

Harry hummed and then asked, '_Why is she down here then and not curled up by a hearth?'_ The snake perked up and looked at Tom, her glare was heavy, and Harry could only imagine what it felt like to be on the receiving end of it. _'I insisted that she join us, she was worried about you last night, and I didn't want her causing problems for you while you slept,'_ he explained. Nangini turned her attention to Harry and tilted her head as though she were pointing at Tom, _'That, and he's a real pain sometimes,'_ she commented. Harry hummed as he watched Tom glare at his familiar, something told him that this was a usual occurrence for them. Harry then turned to Draco and asked, "Are they always like this?" Slate grey eyes met greens and the boy grinned, "Yes, my father usually forgets to engage his filter while speaking in font of me. What were you talking to Nangini about?" he asked. Harry looked at Tom who simply gave a nod of encouragement, "I was just wishing her a good morning, but apparently she's not a morning snake," he replied.

Draco giggled and looked at the large snake on the floor. "That would explain why she chases the elves in the morning if they wake her or try to move her the clean the ash out of the fire place," he said with a grin. Tom laughed, his laughter filled the room causing everyone to look in their direction. Draco chuckled as he watched Nangini slither away in irritation.

Breakfast was winding down and Harry noticed how Draco became even more eager, "Now you may open gifts," said Narcissa. Harry felt his heart plummet as he walked over to the sofa and took a seat, he had a feeling that there wasn't a single gift for him there. "Harry, why are you sitting there?" asked Draco curiously. Harry stared at the blonde in confusion and then at the adults around him, "Go look under the tree," encouraged Severus. Harry slowly got up and walked over to the tree in the room, he had yet to see the massive one in the center hall. Draco was sitting on the floor cross legged and held out a package wrapped in green paper with silver stripes and a large black bow. "Here, it's for you," he said with a smile. "I've got presents?" he asked in confusion. There was silence in the room as he looked at all the adults, they looked upset and a little sad, even Tom looked saddened when he said this. "Yes Harry, you have gifts," said Abraxas suddenly, his tone was gentle.

Harry stared at the blonde in confusion before slowly taking the package and looking at the tag, "It's from Uncle Sev, he always wraps them in that paper," Draco elaborated. Green eyes looked up to see a pair of nearly black ones watching him, he slowly turned his attention back to the gift and untied the bow before ripping through the paper. His eyes widened as he looked at the leather cover of the book, and he pulled the rest of the paper away. He was quiet as his fingers traced the vines on the cover, he slowly opened the beautiful book and stared at the first picture, his eyes widened as he saw a smiling couple, the wind was blowing through the trees and standing there before his eyes was a beautiful woman with green eyes and bright red hair and a man who looked very much like him. Written underneath in a spidery scrawl were the names James Potter and Lily Potter nee Evans. He stared at the photo and smiled, he had never seen his parents and yet here they were before him. He gently touched the page, it took everything he had to not cry, he was simply beyond happy as he looked at them. He slowly turned the page to find photos of Lily, she was smiling and laughing in many of them. She was even pouting in a few. But the one that caught his attention was the photo of her in a red and gold uniform standing next to a boy with black hair, black eyes and a hooked nose in a silver a green uniform, they were standing in front of the sign claiming the platform to be Platform 9 ¾ the Hogwarts Express. He looked up and closed the album before clutching it to his chest, "Thank you," he said softly. Severus smiled a little and nodded.

~~WL~~

Draco tore the paper off of another one of his gifts, but oddly they didn't seem special, it was Harry who was smiling that seemed far more special. He liked it, he didn't understand why but he did. He liked the idea that the boy was happy enough to smile, even though when he opened Uncle Severus' gift he looked more like he was going to cry. Something told Draco that Harry had never seen his parents before and he felt a little sad. As time went by he noticed Harry received books, shoes, clothing a few toys but there was still one package under the tree. He pulled it out and stared at the silver paper with black cord around it. He froze when he looked at the label, it was the Dark Lord's hand writing. Usually Draco would receive books from the man but this felt like something soft had been wrapped in it. He was just as curious as Harry would be to see what was in it.

"Harry, you have one more, it's from Tom," he said softly. Harry looked at the man in question and so did Draco before he accepted the gift. Everyone in the room was frozen and seemed to watch as Harry untied the bow. He slowly moved the paper out of the way and lifted it from the paper, "A cloak?" he asked curiously. Harry swung it around his shoulders, and Draco gaped, "No way!" he jumped to his feet and looked at Harry. "What?" he asked before looking down. His green eyes widened, "My body's gone!" he said with excitement. Draco nodded and looked at him, "Those are really rare, not even we have one," Draco said after a moment. Harry looked over to the Dark Lord with a question burning in his eyes.

"It was your father's, I picked it up from Gringotts," Tom explained. Draco could tell he was lying, it was impossible without the key, which meant Tom had to meet with the Head Master, only the problem was that Dumbledore knew what he looked like. Draco wasn't about to call him out on it, but made a note to find out just how he got the cloak for Harry later. In the mean time he could only imagine the trouble they could get into under it. The idea was certainly appealing to him. Draco got up after a moment and walked over to both his father and mother and gave them a hug before hugging his grand father. Harry had taken the cloak off and he looked over his shoulder to see the boy nervous. At that second he realized that the simple action of thanking his parents had upset the boy and began to mentally scold himself.

Harry looked at Severus first and stood before him, "Thank you for the gift, I've never seen my mother or father until today," he said respectfully. Severn smiled and nodded before looking at Harry and saying smoothly, "You're welcome, Harry." The boy still looked nervous for a bit until Severus gently pat the boy on the head and placed a hand on his shoulder. Draco figured that this would be the closest interaction Harry would allow, he was still nervous and he couldn't blame them. He watched the boy turn toward Tom and noticed how Tom waited patiently for Harry to speak. "Thank you, the cloak, it's beautiful," he said softly. What happened next shocked everyone in the room. Tom reached out and pulled the boy into his arms, he held the boy close to his chest and closed his eyes. Tom looked relaxed as he held the boy. "You're so very welcome Harry," he replied.

Harry looked stiff until he finally relaxed and wrapped his arms around Tom's neck and he heard the boy hum with content. Perhaps he could be held by someone, even if it was the Dark Lord.


	6. Chapter 5

_Author's Note: I want to thank all of you who are reviewing. I'm glad all of you seem to be enjoying his piece, I apologize for the wait. I'm currently working on finishing a different story for Kuroshitsuji. I hope you guys enjoy. _

_Kuro. _

* * *

**Chapter 5: Dark Lords, Blondes and Potion's Masters**

The office was bustling as Aurors and various workers attempted to locate one Hadrian James Potter. The bright red robes of the Aurors shuffled by as they dashed through the office, chasing just about any lead they could find. Lucius was sitting at his desk as he watched them panic and attempt to find the boy savior. He hummed as he lazily swept his long blonde hair back, he didn't think the Ministry would be this bad after misplacing the boy, then again this was Albus Dumbledore's doing. Albus had been attempting to locate the boy and return him to the muggles, which was something he couldn't allow. He was getting tired of dealing with Albus, the man was trying to block him out and has somehow gained a majority of the votes in the Wizingmont. Even at Hogwarts he wasn't allowing the board of Governors to do what they were supposed to.

Lucius looked over the pages before him, they were performance ratings for Hogwarts students since Albus was headmaster. The only departments which seemed to be up to date were potions thanks to Severus and oddly Transfiguration, since Minerva hated to be bested by Severus. Other than those two, Hogwarts was severely behind in every other area, especially Defense against the Dark Arts. For the past decade and a half Albus only allowed for white magic to be taught, which went against a number of principles of Hogwarts. It's goal was to teach black, white and grey magic, not only that of the light. In his opinion Albus had destroyed the fundamental teachings of the founders, not to mention that he had denied the Sorting Hat the ability to select the Head Master. According to tradition the hat was to cry out the name of the Head Master upon the death or retirement of the first. It was an old code which had been agreed upon by the founders; naturally the hat was limited to the teaching staff and renowned Hogwarts Alumni, which oddly the hat seemed to know off hand. The thing seemed to exist outside the realm of the ordinary and time, which in retrospect gave Lucius chills, the thought of the ragged looking hat knowing all of his deeds was a little alarming to say the least.

He leaned back and looked at his desk there had to be a loophole he hadn't thought of, something that would give him leverage. His eyes drifted around his office until he noticed something rather startling his portrait of grand father was replaced by a wizard with bright emerald green eyes, long brown hair, royal cheek bones and a smirk on his lips. He was dressed in luxurious black robes with emerald green embroidery on them and a snake around his shoulders. Lucius' mouth popped open as he stared at the man who was wearing a beautiful golden locket with an emerald green snake in the shape of an S on it. "You- you're," he stammered as he stared at the now grinning portrait. "My, my, I have managed to make a Malfoy stammer, that's certainly a first," commented the portrait, "Yes Lucius, I'm Salazar and yes I know who you are. Honestly its difficult to forget with how frequently your name is thrown around."

Lucius' mouth closed with an audible click as he looked at the man before him, "May I help you?" he asked nobly. The portrait chuckled as he pulled out a scroll and held it up, "Assist me? No, however," he paused as he opened the scroll and allowed it to hover before him, "I believe I can help you." Lucius' grey eyes fell on the scroll and he asked, "How?" Salazar chuckled; the sound was velvety and reminded him of a certain Dark Lord. "That damn rag as you called it, the Sorting Hat," he replied as he smirked knowingly, "Don't worry it's Rowena's creations, and she commented you were more likely to listen to me than her." Lucius felt as though someone had shoved cotton balls in his mouth and nodded numbly, he honestly couldn't believe he was even talking to the elusive portrait. "Now then, as you know the Board of Governors is a recreation of a council which in the past was set up by the founders to ensure that a headmaster doesn't abuse his power correct?" asked Salazar as he scratched the serpent that was draped over his shoulders under its chin.

Lucius hummed and looked at the portrait and stared, "I believe so, it was mentioned first year in Hogwarts a History," he said slowly, it took a bit to brush the cobwebs away from the small tidbit that as a student he honestly didn't care about. It was funny how a foot note in a book could change everything, then again a number of things in his life was like that. "What do you know of the Board of Governors Mister Malfoy?" Lucius growled at this and glared at the portrait, "Quite a bit considering I am on it," he replied. Salazar chucked as he whispered something to his serpent friend. "Then are you aware that the Board is to include one of each of the heirs of the houses, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Magic?" he asked. Lucius froze, his grey eyes widened as he began searching through the documents on his desk, he hadn't heard that clause and from what he knew none of the founder's heirs were on the board. They hadn't been since Head Master Dippet. "I'll take that as a no, this also includes one more family, the Pravells. Once the three decedents are placed on the board with those of the founders then you have the true board of Govenors," Salazar stated as he folded his hands and shifted in his seat, which he had conjured at some point.

Lucius pulled up the pages which he had signed when he had first been inducted as a governor, the clause wasn't there. "It's not here, I need proof Salazar," he stated bluntly as he scowled at the now useless document. "You need to find the charter, the original Charter. Surly you must have it somewhere," Salazar commented, there was a hint of concern in his voice as he spoke and Lucius shook his head. "The original Charter has been lost for decades, this copy was redrafted by Merlin when he first joined the Board. Apparently they searched high and low for the document but couldn't find it," Lucius commented. Salazar sat back and watched the blonde lord pensively. He looked lost in thought, as though it took everything he had to remember. It was then that Lucius reminded himself he was speaking to a portrait, an echo of the great wizard, who honestly had exceeded even his expectations of being useful. "I apologize but I don't remember where it was hidden, it must be in the school. Are you certain the Head Master doesn't have it?" he asked.

Lucius shook his head and looked at Salazar, "Every Head Master has searched for it, only to return empty handed," he replied. There was silence between the two, as Lucius attempted to figure out just where the Charter would be hidden. Every school regardless of age had a Charter, it was an application for land and the ability to create an establishment from the legislative body at the time. Every Charter was different but usually outlined the basics of School Policy, teaching requirements, ethics and a variety of fail-safes to ensure that students were taught the proper materials. Why he hadn't thought to go searching for the charter before was a mystery to him. Yet, now there was another issue as well, he had to find the heirs to not only the founders but also Pravells. "What if the heirs are all children?" asked Lucius thoughtfully. Salazar hummed and looked at him, "Simple, the Lady of Hogwarts will take control and will act on their behalf. Don't you know who the heirs are?" he asked after a moment. Lucius felt those emerald green eyes gazing through him like daggers. "No, that information was lost as well," he replied slowly. Salazar huffed and looked at Lucius as though he were a fool, "Nothing is ever lost, especially blood. Look at the most powerful wizards of the age, minus the Headmaster and test their blood," he replied.

Lucius paled at the mention of blood magic, the Ministry had banned it long ago since it was used to wreak havoc on the general population. "That's considered illegal now Salazar, the only ones who can do it are the goblins," he replied. There was a pause as the founder sighed in frustration, another block, it seemed the closer they drew to a solution, the further away they actually were from it. "Unless," Salazar said with a grin, "You have a capable Potion's Master correct?" Lucius nodded and scowled, how Severus factored into this confused him. The man was his long time friend and he knew better than anyone that the man was quite literally the best Potion's Master of the Age, and the youngest to receive Mastership. "Good, go down to my study and pick up journal 119, page 365 there should be something there," he stated with an air of triumph. Lucius was about to bound out of his seat until he remembered a certain caveat. "Where is your study?" he asked. Salazar replied simply, "In my chambers of course," he stated.

Lucius looked at the portrait as though it were daft and groaned, "What?" asked Salazar in confusion his brows lifted as he asked. Lucius glared at the portrait, "Simple, you're study is lost, like the rest of your chambers, no one knows where they are!" Salazar simply snorted and began laughing with a grin on his face. Lucius honestly wished that he could jump through the portrait and kill him at that moment. He hated it when people laughed at his misfortune. "The heir does, just ask him," he stated before vanishing. Lucius was about to shout the fact that he didn't know who any of the heirs were when the man vanished. Stepping back into the frame was his ancestor who looked at him and asked bluntly, "So what did I miss?" Lucius pushed himself away from his desk and decided it was now time to torture the interns since he was frustrated.

He walked out of his office and watched as various Ministry employees rushed back and forth. His secretary stood at attention and asked, "What can I get for you Mister Malfoy?" Lucius was about to be sarcastic and say the Hogwarts Charter when he realized all he had to do was head to the Hall of Records, which was essentially a massive library filled with genealogy charts. He had a feeling if he was going to find anything it would be there. He felt as though he were gliding across the floras he walked toward the lift, he smile deviously and watched a number of women trip over them selves as a result. The lift hurled it's self backward as he waited for it to zip to his destination. His mind was teaming with plans to slip past the archive keeper. Before he even realized it the contraption stopped at his floor and he slipped out. Getting in was easy, it was slipping past the records keeper, that was the hard part. His black shoes clicked as he walked across the green marble floors to the center of a massive space.

He had been to the archive once before, but the entrance was different. He sighed when he looked up to see the portrait of a different keeper hanging above him. "Brilliant," he mumbled as he looked at the walls, there wasn't a door in sight. His eyes tipped up to the ceiling and he looked at the beautiful stain glass dome over head. Usually he would admire the craftsmanship but he found himself more irritated than impressed. "Mister Malfoy, how nice to see you once again," said a sweet voice. He looked up to see the smiling face of Judge Amelia Bones. Internally he cringed she had been his judge for his trial. Luckily he was saved by the fact that the mark had vanished from his arm until the Dark Lord had returned. "Judge Bones," he greeted with a polite nod. She smiled a little and stepped into the center of a large circular design, "Going to the archive?" she asked simply as she stood in the center of a circle with the Ministry Seal on it.

Lucius nodded and she chuckled, "Then I suggest you stand beside me," she stated. The blonde noble looked at the brunet who was still dressed in court robes. Her ocean blue eyes looked at him with a hint of satisfaction that the clever Lucius Malfoy was no match for a Ravenclaw. He huffed before standing beside her and crossed his arms. She knelt on the floor and place her hand on the tile, Lucius was about to shoot a nasty remark when the floor shifted and he watched before his eyes as the delicate pattern in the floor moved like the tumblers of a lock. "What?" he asked in confusion. Bones snickered as the man's jaw hit the floor and slowly the circle which they had been standing on began to lower it's self through the floor. "Impressed? The Archive's Keeper deemed the doors unsafe, now just don't piss him off. Keep that Malfoy pride to yourself, you'll find that he isn't keen on it," she stated as the marble slab hovered just a step above the floor. He watched as Amelia stepped off and asked, "Why are you helping me?" She shrugged and smiled a little, "You wouldn't come here if you weren't looking for something important. Besides who's to say you can even find it," she stated. Lucius was about to say something when he suddenly realized what she was saying. Books were flying through the air, landing on various shelves and pages seemed to flutter like birds. The stacks themselves were so tall that he couldn't even see the tops of them. Scrolls, books, journals, sheets and even stamps were thrown about in no true order. "Happy Hunting!" called Bones over her shoulder as she disappeared down a row.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into?"

~~WL~~

Harry opened his eyes and slowly slipped into the new clothing which had been given to him by the Malfoys, he loved the feeling of the soft fabrics against his skin and hummed as he stretched. There was a knock on the door and Harry called, "Come in," as he finished slipping into the sweater, the house was oddly cold in the winter. He turned around to see Draco standing in the doorway. "Draco?" asked Harry as the blonde smiled and sauntered in, clearly he had learned this habit from his father. Harry had been with them for the past few days and began to pick up on the Malfoy ways, one of them was the way they walked. Regardless of where they were they quite frankly walked in as though they owned the place, which honestly amused Harry. "Good morning, Dad's at work, Mom's helping at Saint Mungos, Uncle Sev is brewing and Tom had to go out," Draco explained before plopping on the bed and rolled over so he was looking up at the ceiling. Harry chuckled as he watched the Malfoy heir act in an undignified manner, it was usual of the boy but still rather fun. "So you get to choose where we have breakfast, the solarium is heated and it has a pretty cool view of the grounds, which are currently covered in snow. We could go to the dinning room or even eat here. You choose," Draco said simply as he rolled over and watched as Harry attempted to tame his hair.

"The Solarium sounds cool," Harry replied with a smile as he placed the comb down, and deemed it pointless. Narcissa had called it the Potter Curse, apparently every Potter had untidy hair, and even long it was unruly. Draco grinned and slipped off of Harry's bed, it had been two days since Harry had first woken and he was still learning the layout of the massive house. Harry followed Draco out of his room and looked around egirly, the walls were lined with portraits and aritfacts were placed on tables through out the hallway. "Wow, Drake how big is this place?" he asked curiously as he looked at the portraits each of them were smiling and looking at them as they seemed to walk by. Draco hummed thoughtfully as he attempted to remember the approximate cubic meters of floor plan of the house. "Well there's about 67 rooms that I know of, plus the attic, the cellar, the dungeon, the potion's lab where uncle Sev is and a separate wing which houses the practicing rooms. Not to mention the boat house and guest house," he explained. Harry's mouth popped open as he openly gaped at the blonde. Draco simply continued walking and then commented, "This is considered the smaller house, you should see the other one in France, much bigger and warmer too. I thought the Potters had a ton of properties. Come to think of it you guys have even more than we do."

Harry stared at Draco, he had always been told he was worthless and a burden, only to learn that he wasn't. That he was in fact as wealthy as the Malfoys, who were considered rich by any standard. "Really?" asked Harry as he ran his hand through his hair. Draco stopped abruptly and looked at the raven haired boy, "No way, surly you knew. I mean come on you guys even have a pent house in Japan, not even we have that," commented Draco. Harry shook his head and looked thoughtfully out the window. "The only place that was ever considered mine was my cupboard," he commented, he was having a difficult time wrapping his head around Draco's words. All his life he had been told he was worthless and that his parents were paupers, only to find out that they weren't. That he was part of the highest levels of society. "Harry?" asked Draco after a moment and the young boy snapped back to reality. "What's wrong?" he asked slowly. Harry smiled as he looked at the blonde boy, his grey eyes were sparkling with concern and now Harry could see the features which Narcissa had bestowed upon the Malfoy scion. At a glance Draco was a carbon copy of Lucius, however, now he realized that the boy had his mother's kindness and compassion as well. "I, I've always been told that I was good for nothing and that I wasn't wanted," he began and looked out the window sadly, "Then I wake up and I learn that there's a hold society of people who care about me, and that I'm worth more than I could ever dream." Harry paused as he slowly walked over to the window and leaned on the frame, "It's so surreal, I'm worried if I become too happy I might just wake up in my cupboard," he stated as he gazed out the window, "that you, you're family, Tom and Sev; that all of this would be nothing but a dream."

Suddenly a pair of slender arms was wrapped around the boy, and he felt warmth wrap around him like a blanket. Harry glanced over to see a head of blonde hair resting on his shoulder. "You're not dreaming, Harry. You're never going back there," Draco stated firmly as he lifted his head, "I won't let them take you." The blonde was determined to never released his friend, no matter what the consequence. Harry's eyes widened, before he smiled brightly, he belonged somewhere and that was what mattered.

"Come on then, I'm starving," Draco commanded as he slipped away from Harry and continued down the hallway, a few turns latter and a stair case and the young lord had found the Solarium. Emerald eyes widened as they took in the sight before them, the room was filled with orchids. Sitting in the middle of the room was a white iron table with two chairs and a full spread, compliments of the house elves. "My mother loves Orchids, she has quiet the collection doesn't she? She likes roses too," Draco commented as he took a seat in one of the chairs. Harry was still as he looked at the blonde boy among the flowers, he looked like an angel resting in the garden of Eden. Light was pouring in from every direction making the blonde's platinum hair glisten in the light and his grey eyes seem even more dramatic against his porcelain face. At that moment, Draco looked different, fragile and yet strong, thanks to Lucius' powerful jaw and nose which had been bestowed upon the boy. "They're beautiful," Harry commented as he slowly walked over to one of the man pots.

His eyes fell on a beautiful white flower with graceful petals and purple fringe. The petals looked supple and so delicate that by simply touching them he would cause the flower to wither and die. They seemed to float before him, he loved the scent and hummed, it was stronger than a rose's and seemed far more mysterious to him. "That's mother's favorite. It's from Colombia, it's called a _Cattleya_. It also happens to be their national flower," Draco explained. Harry slowly stepped away from the breathtaking flower and took a seat before the young blonde lord. "What about Severus?" asked Harry slowly, somehow while gazing at the orchid he was reminded of the dower potion master who was currently hiding in the lab. There was a pause as Draco gave the question some thought, "I don't know really, but when ever he is in the gardens he spends a significant amount of time with the lilies we have. He stares at the white ones the longest," Draco commented. Harry nodded, he could remember the glass like Lily the man had given him before, it was still sitting in his room in a place of honor on his night table.

The boys fell into silence as they began eating, Harry was about to dig in when Draco hummed and whipped his mouth on a napkin. "Hang on, I almost forgot," he said as he began digging in his pocket for something. After a moment, he pulled a vile which contained a brown liquid in it. "Uncle Sev wants you to take that. It's a Nutrient Potion, it's supposed to help you gain weight," Draco explained. Harry sighed as he collected the glass bottle from the blonde's hand. He had a feeling that this was going to taste like soiled gym socks, but knew it was far easier to drink the potion and satisfy the man than it was to refuse and have it forced down his throat anyway. Harry popped the cork and wrinkled his nose before saying, "Cheers." Draco chuckled as Harry knocked the bottle back and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I'm beginning to think he makes those things taste horrible on purpose," commented Harry. Draco smiled broadly and shook his head. Clearly his complaint was one of a long list of them about Severus' potions.

"So what are we going to do?" asked Harry. The blonde looked up in confusion, a sliver knife glinted in his hand and Harry noted the black berry jam which was on the end from spreading it on a piece of rye toast. "What on earth do you mean?" asked Draco with a hint of irritation. Harry paused and then remembered that Draco was raised to speak properly and wanted Harry to do so as well. "What are we going to do today since the adults are away?" asked Harry, his voice was smoother and he sounded a little more confident. A smile broke across Draco's face as a resulted he folded his toast in half so it made a loud crunching sound. "What any pair of nine year olds would do," he replied simply. Harry tilted his head and looked at Draco, somehow he couldn't understand quite what the blonde was getting at. "Read?" asked Harry after a moment. Tom had taken him to the library where he fell in love with all of the books in it. Draco chuckled and shook his head before placing his toast back on his place and rubbing his fingers together to get the crumbs off of them. His grey eyes fell on his tea before the boy decided to warm his cup with a touch more from the pot. "No, the one thing that we are expected to do at our age, get in trouble," he said simply as he lifted the cup to his lips. A smirk was playing on his lips as he did so.

Emerald green eyes widened as he looked at the boy, he was still worried about getting thrown out, especially since he was there on their good graces. "Dray, that sounds like a really bad idea," he commented. Draco took a sip of tea and then placed the cup back on its saucer. He didn't seem too thrilled with Harry's answer as he crossed his legs and then his arms. Harry stared as he watched Draco do this, he looked so much like his father it was a little frightening, one of his eyebrows lifted as he did this. "Oh?" he asked simply, "Fine, I'll just find a way to amuse myself, I was going to include you in my plan but now I won't," Draco commented. Harry groaned, Malfoy honestly was far more troublesome than he was. "What about?" asked Harry as he eyed the door nervously. Draco waved his hand in front of his face and commented, "Dad and Tom? They won't care, besides they prank one another all the time. The most that will happen is that we have to clean cauldrons for Uncle Sev."

Draco grinned mischievously, his once slicked back blonde hair fell out of place and his stormy grey eyes were twinkling with mischief as he swept a hand through his hair. Part of Harry ached to see just how clever the boy was, while the other part preferred not to. He sighed, there was only one way to find out. "Okay, you have my interest, what's the plan?" Draco grinned broadly as he slid his saucer out of the way and leaned on the table with his elbows. His fingers were steeped before his lips. "What color are bats?" he asked with a smirk.

~~WL~~

Blank, that's all that was there when ever Tom attempted to remember that dreadful night. It felt as though he were missing something important, something essential and yet he couldn't figure it out. His chest ached when ever he looked at Harry, but he wasn't sure if that was from the knowledge that he had killed the boy's parents or something deeper. He didn't understand it, and honestly it got on his nerves. He sighed as he placed his quill on his desk and looked at the letter which had been tucked in one of the Cloak's inner pockets. He didn't even realize the cloak had such a pocket, he looked at the ring around his finger and hummed, there was something important about it, now if only he could remember. Tom leaned back in his chair and raked his fingers through his black hair lazily. He could remember the day he had gotten into the castle, in all honestly he had been expecting to battle with the wards and the massive doors only for the iron gates to open on their own. He closed his eyes as he remembered the massive gates opening.

_The Scottish air had been nippy and his cheeks were red from the frightful cold, he stood before the massive gates and only now did he realize how much of an obstacle they were. He could feel the freshly applied wards around them, Flitwick must have reapplied them while the students were away, there were two days left to the start of the Spring Semester, and from what he could tell only a select few had decided to stay. Yet something told him to touch the gate, as foolish as it sounded since a majority of the wards would sear ones hand off if they attempted, something in the back of his mind told him to touch it. Tom's hand shook a little as he reached out to touch the cold gates only for the wards to hum. Red eyes closed in anticipation as he expected for them to go off and for him to slam into a wall, and yet they didn't. He slowly opened his eyes and stared in awe as he felt the wards send a comforting warmth through him, as though he belonged there, that it was the castle's way of saying it was his home. Tom drew a deep breath before slowly stepping through the gates, he held his yew and phoenix feather wand in hand and stared as a golden orb raced down the path to greet him. _

_Instantly Tom had taken a defensive position, prepared to blast what ever the object was to oblivion, only to watch it shift into a sleigh. He stared as the light moved, drawing out the chasse, the harnesses, the doors, and even the cab. The blades of the rudders on the sleigh glistened in the light and he stared at the Hogwarts Crest on the door. Tom's eyes narrowed as the small black door sung open on it's own, to show a plush interior made of golds, silvers, rubies, sapphires, emerald and plums. He slowly slipped into the sleigh which was covered and took a seat, it was warm and he felt the familiar and gentle caress of magic against his skin. He couldn't explain it, and in all honesty he didn't want to. The sleigh moved on its own up the hill and he stared at the white world which seemed to slide by, not once did he see an Auror or a professor making their way to him. It was odd and yet soothing as the sleight slowed it's pace and stopped before a familiar court yard. Tom slowly stepped out and felt the kiss of magic against his skin, only this time it was accompanied by a slight tingle. He hummed in confusion as he went to sweep his hair out of his face when he noticed it was a light coffee color. He paused and summoned a mirror, it hovered before him and his eyes widened, they were blue. His breath fogged the slick glace as he looked at them, they hadn't been blue in years, his hair was several shades lighter but he still had alabaster skin. His features were a little softer and only now did he realize that Hogwarts had given him the gift of a glamour. It was as though she knew he was coming to retrieve something that didn't belong to the Headmaster. He swept across the snow covered Court Yard, memories flowed back to him one by one of his true home. _

_Tom paused before a familiar pair of massive, weathered oak doors. He reached out to touch them only for them to swing open as well. "Strange," he breathed as he entered the warm atmosphere of the castle. Hogwarts has some of the strongest wards in the world, he knew that for certain and yet he had managed to enter the castle without an issue. It was as though the castle somehow wanted him there. He wasted no time rushing through the familiar corridors to his destination, he had a limited period of time to reach his destination before someone would realize that there was someone in the castle who didn't belong. He glided across the stone floors toward the familiar guardian of the Headmaster's office. The same Gargoyle which hadn't changed since Dippet, he didn't know the password and was about to give up when the Gargoyle did the strangest thing, it bowed to him. After bowing it began to rise and Tom jumped on the second step from the top. As he ascended he could hear the whispers of the portraits and somehow the castle, it was the strangest feeling, it didn't frighten him, it just made him feel as though he belonged. The gargoyle stopped and Tom stepped into the hallway just before the headmaster's door. He didn't even have to knock, he had heard rumor that Albus was away for the holidays. _

_He slowly slipped into the office and looked around at it, Albus had clearly made changes to it. The portraits lined the walls looked at him, books on the shelves whispered amongst themselves, and he noticed all of the silver contraptions spread through the room. His eyes widened as he noticed the bright red phoenix on the perch, he had heard of the bird but didn't know the Headmaster actually owned him. It took everything he had to not reach out and pet it. "It's nice to see you're back," said a soft voice which was accompanied by a warm smile. Tom turned around quickly looking for the voice until one of the former headmasters pointed to the self where the Sorting Hat sat. "You?" he asked incredulously. The hat chuckled and hummed to it's self, "Tom Marvolo Riddle, it's been a long time hasn't it? What you seek will only show it's self when you command it to," the hat stated. Tom's eyes narrowed as he fiddled with his ring, twisting it three times clock wise and another two counter clockwise. "How do you know what I'm looking for?" he asked the hat skeptically, the hat grinned. _

_"I don't, but I'm sure she does," it replied, Tom was getting more and more irritated and without thinking held his hand out palm up and shouted, "I'm looking for an invisibility cloak, how the fuck do you think I'm going to simply-" there was silence as he felt something fall into his open palm. Blue eyes widened as the silky fabric ran across his skin and he turned his head, draped over his free hand was the cloak. His lips parted as he attempted to understand what had just happened. "How?" he asked curiously as he slowly examined it. "Magic, now I suggest you get going a certain old man will be returning and I highly doubt that he would want to run into Lord Voldemort in his office," the Sorting Hat cautioned. Tom was about to ask how the thing even knew who he was until he heard the words themselves. _

_In moments he was about to rush from the room when the Hat shouted, "WAIT! Just Apperate!" Tom stared at the hat as though it were insane, he knew he would get splinched by the wards if he even attempted it. "Trust me Mister Riddle! Just do it!" shouted the hat again. Tom turned when he heard a familiar crack and he growled before attempting to apperate himself. Worse case scenario he would get splinched. There was a familiar tug at his naval and when he expected to find pain he was simply greeted by a warm fire and a familiar hiss, **'Where the hell have you been?'**_

Tom was snapped out of his daydream by a loud shout, "POTTER!" which was followed a few seconds later by, "MALFOY!" it rang through the halls, causing them to shake violently, and for a moment he thought the roof of the mansion lifted off the structure. Red eyes widened as he jumped to attention with his wand out. There was a thunder of footsteps, only to be followed by a yelp from both boys. Then silence followed which caused the Dark Lord to stare at the door, he honestly wasn't sure if he should open it and check on the boys to see if Severus had murdered them, or stay in the sanctuary of his office. Then again what ever happened would surly end up storming into his office, he sighed and looked at the hour glass on his desk before he began to count, "3," the silence stretched on. "2," he heard footsteps approaching his office. They grew louder as did the ranting of the Potion's Master, "1," he said simply. There was a pause before a rather gentle rapping on his office doors. Tom sighed as he walked around the front of his desk, "Better get this over with," he mumbled.

He rubbed his head and called, "Enter." The door swung open to show the most comical thing Tom Marvolo Riddle had seen since his Hogwarts days. Standing in the threshold was a very stressed and angry looking Severus Snape. He had traffic cone orange hair, bright blue skin, neon robes, and a very familiar pair of boys. His black eyes looked lethal and he had a feeling he knew just what happened. Harry and Draco looked around the office innocently as Harry hid the Invisibility cloak behind his back. Everything in the office seemed immensely interesting compared to Tom and Severus. He should have known that the boy had a troublesome streak like James Potter. A chuckle fell from his lips as he looked at the man, his black robes had been transformed into neon colored ones, which he was certain a very familiar Headmaster would love. "My Lord," Severus said with a hint of anger and at that point Tom was on the floor holding his sides laughing hysterically. Of all the people to prank they had chosen Severus, the most serious and perhaps terrifying of the group, second to Greyback of course but still terrifying to most of the student population of Hogwarts. His laughter filled the room and tears of joy leaked from his eyes as he clutched his sides, the boys had put him in stitches. "Well done, well done," he stated as he attempted to pull himself back together, which was pretty much useless considering he would have to lift the spells.

"It's not that amusing my lord," commented Severus with irritation. Tom shook his head and grinned broadly, "Severus I didn't know you wanted to be a Smurf, you should have said something sooner." Severus glared at him darkly; he had a feeling if he were a student still that the Potion's Master would have him scrubbing cauldrons well into his seventh year. Severus grit his teeth and glared at the boys. "It isn't that amusing," he hissed again. Tom shook his head and whipped his eyes lazily with the side of his index finger, "I beg to differ," he commented as he attempted to recompose himself. Tom could tell that the man was itching to get the boys to scrub cauldrons all day.

Tom slipped his yew and phoenix wand from his sleeve and with the flick of his wrist the accidental magic was reversed, leaving the dower man in all his irritable glory. The things he could teach these boys, "Sadly Harry and Draco, you will have to make it up to Severus, which will be as follows, assisting him in the lab prepping ingredients," he stated. Harry and Draco nodded in unison and suddenly found the floor to be immensely interesting. Without a second thought Severus was escorting the pair to the lab.

A smile curved Tom's lips as he leaned back in his chair and put his arms behind his head. Nagini slithered in and asked, _'What's made you so happy?' _

_'What's dower, black and was attempting to join the Blue Men?' _he hissed with a grin and the snake blinked in confusion, _'One Severus Snape. Oh the things I can teach these boys.' _

~~ WL ~~

Day shifted to night, and just as everyone was returning to bed, there was only one person up and about. Sitting in the Living room with her legs crossed reading a book of Charms was a beautiful woman dressed in a black silk night dress. The dress was long and when she was standing stopped just above her ankles, with a long slit that stopped mid thigh and a plunging neckline. It hugged her curves, accenting the swell of her breast, trim waist, flat stomach and elegant hips, outlining each and every one of them, showcasing her hourglass figure. Even after having Draco she still looked as attractive as any of the younger witches often seen strutting through Diagon Alley. Lucius had picked up the dress on one of his trips to China. Her long blonde and black hair was down and fell like a curtain down her back, and her fingers tugged the green dressing gown tighter. A dark emerald green robe swallowed her as she sat before the fire, her wand beside her and the book between her fingers. Grey eyes scanned the pages slowly, as an irritated huff filled the room. In seconds the book snapped shut and the heavy tome was dropped on the side table. She shifted once again and pulled her legs up so she could curl up in the large black leather chair which her husband loved. She crossed her arms and leaned her head against the side of it as she listened for him to return. To say that Narcissa Malfoy was nervous was an understatement; Lucius was late, very late.

Usually he was home every evening at five, however he wasn't home yet and he hadn't sent word that he would be late. Her teeth were on edge as she began to think about what could possibly make the man late. Lucius was always on time, and if he were late, he would have sent word. She crossed her arms and watched the fire anxiously for any sign that it would turn green and her husband would step out of it like he always did. It was never Lucius leaving or returning from a long day that worried her, but when he was late. Tom had been irritable for the past few days, he knew far more about Harry than he was saying, but she wasn't one to pry into the Dark Lord's life. There were far too many dark secrets in it.

Minutes passed like hours and slowly the Lady of the House's eyes grew heavy. She didn't want to sleep, she couldn't and yet her body was screaming at her to do so. Between the worry over Harry and what would happen to the dear boy, Tom's behavior and the general return of Severus' source of distress, she felt as though she were in over her head. For years all three men had been her rocks, her anchors and yet they were now all unable to stay grounded and suddenly she was not only grounding Lucius but the others as well. She couldn't take it, her fingers itched to touch wood and feel the hum of strings beneath them. Narcissa sighed she couldn't take it, she needed her companion and vice which over the years she had found almost as much comfort in as Lucius. Instantly Narcissa was on her feet and crafted a simple wooden chair with a soft plum colored cushion. She held her hand out and watched as her faithful companion floated into the room.

Her fingers wrapped around her familiar and slender bow, she loved the feeling of the delicate wood between her fingers, but no where near as much as the instrument it's self. Standing before, waiting at attention was Narcissa's one vice, her eyes traveled from the beautiful curled red wood of it's head, down a slender dark wooden neck and to the elegant curves of the instrument's body, her black F holes stood out in the light and she smiled as each of the strings glistened in the light of the fire. She slowly touched the instrument's long neck and caressed it with the tips of her fingers with affection, she could feel it's smooth finish and admired the glossy sheen it had acquired after she had polished it not too long ago. She slowly touched it's neck to her head and closed her eyes. This instrument was her first friend, her first love, her first addiction, and her undoing, her cello.

Narcissa drew a deep breath as she closed her eyes and positioned her self. She sighed with content as she straightened her back, and spread her knees so she could cradle the cello properly. She hummed as she leaned it against her body and supported it as though it were her lover. She felt it's familiar wood against the inside of her thigh as she lifted her bow and positioned her fingers over the finger board of the instrument. She drew a deep breath and drew the bow across the strings, the deep voice of the cello hummed, the vibrations rang through her frame like the thoughts of he life. She closed her eyes as she slowly felt herself slip into the familiar motion of drawing the bow across the strings, her fingers gently caressing the strings as they danced delicately down the neck of the instrument. A melancholy piece filled the room, as the familiar tones of Elgar's Cello Concerto Opus 85 broke through the silence. Every thought of the men in her life slipped into the background as she drew the bow, with each note a piece of her seemed to drift away as the rich voice of the cello attempted to soothe her worries. Her head dipped forward as she begged for the cello to sing louder and broader, with each draw her mask fell further off until it shattered on the floor. Her face twisted with sadness and concern as she began to sway as the bow seemed to move on it's own.

The strings hummed beneath her fingers as he thoughts were finally free from their worrisome confines. Her blonde hair fell over her shoulders and into her eyes as she held the cello closer, and closer, savoring the feeling of her second love between her legs. Yet, she remained her tender touches, caressing the cello and worshiping it with each and every note. She was so close, so close to letting go entirely, to finally feel it. She felt the familiar fire fill her veins, it spread rapidly and made her heart pound, the tension of the strings beneath her fingers, the taught bow in her hand and the lush voice which sang. The tempo, the pain, the sorrow, that lamenting sound of a lonesome cello without it's orchestra and the hope, the hope that not all was lost, that her world would come together once more and she would be free. Free from everything, every worry, every fear, and looming threat. The cello soared as she smiled softly, yes it was in her grasp, her fingers danced up and down the neck of the cello with accuracy and fluidity, as though she and the cello were made for one another. Suddenly there was light in the darkness, every emotion collided as she felt her soul sing, her bow moved rapidly as she dipped and arched her back, her fingers pressing dangerously close to the end of the finger board as she listened to the high notes of the cello fill her soul. Those cries of desire from such a dismal place, her heart was pounding and for a moment she saw white. She was free.

She paused, her chest was heaving, and her heart was thundering in her chest. She drew a deep breath and relaxed slightly before continuing to the end, a numbness had set in, one which seemed to go to her core. The final notes of the concerto hung in the air solemnly, she felt so alone, even though there were others in the house. She tipped her head back, gasping for air, the large green dress robe was slipping off her shoulder and now rested as the crook of her elbow, with the other side on her shoulder. "Narcissa? Love?" called a familiar voice. She slowly opened her eyes to see the concerned steel grey eyes of her husband. He looked exhausted but far more concerned for her. He slowly knelt on the floor beside her and placed a hand on her cheek. "Why are you crying?" he asked gently as his fingers swept away the incriminating droplets which had fallen at some point.

"You're late, I thought that you," she whispered before placing her bow on the floor and leaning the cello against the plush leather chair. In seconds her arms were wrapped around Lucius' shoulders and she nuzzled his neck, breathing in his scent and cologne. He wrapped his arms around her and began to rub soothing circled into her back, she could feel his warm hands through the dress robe and whispered, "Hush, it's alright, I'm home," he paused and continued, "I'm sorry I was late. I couldn't get a hold of my secretary or a house elf, not even an owl would come to me while I was in that god forsaken hall of records." She clutched him as though he were her life line and she whispered, "I don't know what I would do if I lost you."

Lucius pulled back and lifted her chin with his fingers, "Look at me, you won't, it would take more than a few misguided Wizards to rip me from you. What's brought this on?" he asked gently. His voice was soft and his grey eyes seemed to soften as he looked at her. She sighed in frustration and looked at him, "I, I keep thinking about Lily and James and Harry, I can't help but wonder what would have happened if it were us and Draco was the child of prophesy," she replied hesitantly. Lucius gave her a knowing smile, Narcissa was a strong woman, but she too had her fears. "Love, I'm never going to let that happen. He is safe, I am safe and here in your arms," he replied as he gently took one of her hands and placed it on his chest, "See, I'm here." She could feel his heat beat beneath her palm and she nodded. Lucius reached up and tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and kissed her head affectionately. "You're cold," he whispered as he wrapped one of his hands around hers. He gently rubbed his palms over it, hoping the friction would warm them.

"Take me to bed," she said softly to him. Lucius smiled as he slowly slipped his arms under her and picked her up. "As you wish," he replied and with the nod of his head her cello returned to the Music Room. He continued to walk with her in his arms and whispered, "I noticed you borrowed my robe, miss me that much?" She smiled and kissed his neck, "No matter how long you are gone, or how far you go, I always miss you," he replied simply. She watched a smile curve her husband's lips and she hummed. They stopped before the doors of their bedroom and they swung open on their own. "I love you," she whispered softly as he continued toward the bed. "I love you too," he whispered softly as he placed her on the bed and crawled onto it. His hands slid over her sides, she could feel their warmth through the thin silk and moaned. "I also love this dress on you, I wonder how it looks on the floor," he commented.

Narcissa chuckled as her pearl white teeth sank into her plump lower lip, "Why don't we find out?" she asked as she tugged on his neck tie.


	7. Chapter 6: A Bit of Rare Magic

_**Author's Note: **I apologize for not updating sooner, my life has been a bit of a mess, I had a messy split with my boyfriend. I'm okay but he was pretty angry, I haven't been in the mood to write since then. Please note that there is a potion of this story from another one of my works, I am still working on it, it's an original work of mine called "The Tailor," please keep an eye out for it. I just couldn't resist including it, the passages when Severus is stitching up Tom's soul. SO don't panic if you've read it somewhere else or see it in the future. _

* * *

**Chapter 6: A Rare Bit of Magic**

Secrets can make or break a person, the darker the secret the rather they fall from grace and into the darkness where the demons dwell. However, there are some who are so accustomed to living in the dark that somehow they have become part of it themselves, and plunging further into it isn't' an issue. Yet, sometimes there were a few demons who had managed to carve out a small place where the light could shine in the darkness, where they could cultivate just a little hope.

The air was cool in the lab and light was in every nook and cranny, it was actually welcoming and the walls were lined with rose wood cabinets that were lined with clean linens and shelves of potions ingredients. While off to the side bordering a pair of glass French doors were shelves of books which stretched from the floor to the ceiling. The French doors which were surrounded by rose wood opened to the gardens where ingredients were cultivated. There was a small patio just before them as well an outdoor brick set up for crafting potions which required moon light.

The counters of the lab were black granite; they glistened in the light and were so clean that even the tight spidery scrawl on the labels on the jars of ingredients could be read in their reflections. Barrels off to the far corner were filled with fresh stock of horned slugs, eels and other creatures which were necessary for the ancient art of brewing. Caldrons of every size, shape and material were both hanging and placed on shelves. The fireplace was the most impressive of the entire set up, it was massive, so large in fact that it housed five of the largest caldrons available on the market. Each caldron had a separate fire under it and was temperature controlled thanks to innovative warding on the Potion Master's part.

Glass bottles, phials, flasks, tubes and funnels were cleaned and glistened in the light. Stirring rods were placed in boxes but the ones which the Potion's master frequently used were in a simple crystal vase, resting in the center of the lab on one of two islands, which was covered in burners. The second island had a crystal top and wooden cutting boards resting on top of it, with knives of every shape, and size, from a traditional double edged athame to the elegant crescent shaped boline knife were resting on it.

There was a smaller fire place however, it was significantly smaller, in fact it was just barely large enough for two people to stand inside of it. It was always empty, never a caldron sat in it, and more often than not it was only lit when required, or when ever the room's owner felt he need to converse with another person, which was rare. In fact, it was so rare that the fireplace was literally lit once in a blue moon. It was his way of keeping the pest at bay.

Only the sound of a sharp blade slicing through ginger root could be heard, the snap as the blade hit the wooden block as well as the friction between the blade and the white root were the only two things which could be heard. Long potion stained fingers pinched the blade in place as their master continued to slice through the hard root. Obsidian eyes were glaring at the root with irritation, and a sneer curled the man's lips. Black slightly oily hair was pulled back in a black leather strap. His long black robes were sprawled on the back of at chair and he had rolled up the sleeves of his crisp black shirt, white scars littered his arms from cuts and burns. There was a knock on the lab door which joined the lab to the house and he sighed before picking up a sterile white rag and whipping the blade. His shoulders heaved a sigh before he turned to one of his cabinets and pulled out a glass bottle labeled essence of lilac.

The glass doors which lead to his lab were shoved open rather violently, in fact if he hadn't charmed the glass to be unbreakable, he was certain the glass in the panes would have shattered, or at least cracked. He was about to shoot a snide remarked when he noticed that it wasn't Lucius who had knocked, the man always wore florid cologne, this one smelled of cedar and spices. "Severus, must you be difficult?" he asked as he held up the large sign with the red words sprawled across it boldly, "Enter at your own risk." Severus sighed as he looked at Tom, there was something in the man's red eyes which told him that Tom needed to talk.

The glass bottle of the Essence of Lilac was placed on the table, it made a soft tap as he did so. The brunet strode into the room cautiously, he seemed lost in his own mind, it reminded Severus far too much of the man before he had taken the time to stitch Tom's soul back together. Piece by piece Severus stitched, with a needle of bone and the crimson threads of humanity, which he had wrenched from his own soul. Bright red silk strands dripping in blood were pulled over and over again through the shards of what had once been a soul, tugging, pinching and tightening in an effort to put together something that should have never been broken. Ripping himself apart in an attempt to make the finest silk threads, what little he could produce from his own mangled soul. Hours he spent working to assemble what had once been shattered, to fix what many believed couldn't be. It was painful, so very painful that even the Cruciatus Curse would seem like a blessing compared to this. Somehow through the haze of pain and agony he managed it, to have done the impossible and fix a shattered soul with his own hands. There was a price like everything else, a horrible price, he had to take care of Tom and if the man were to die so was he. The price of saving the man was he had to give up something equaled or greater in return. He just didn't know what it was yet, it seemed as though fate had yet to collect. Severus didn't even know why he had done such a deed, before he believe it was out of obligation but now he wasn't sure himself, it was all like a horrible nightmare.

Yet there was a piece missing, that night when Severus exhausted himself to save what he could of Tom Riddle's soul, he learned that a piece of the man was missing, it was small but enough to affect him. A sliver which had been misplaced amidst the chaos had vanished from view, Severus watched Tom trail his fingers on the cold counters. He never told Tom, how he could tell the man he couldn't find all the shards of the man's shattered soul, when he had taken it upon himself to stitch the man together again.

Part of the dower potion master began to wonder if the lost expression on Tom's face was his subconscious screaming at him about missing a piece of himself. Tom conjured a Mahogany stool with a green and silver cushion resting upon its top, he perched on it. The white sign laid forgotten on the opposite counter and Severus watched Tom wring his hands as though he were a school boy who was about to be berated, it was unnerving to see. "Tom?" asked Severus softly as he set the root aside, he was still preparing ingredients, so he had a bit before he began to brew. Blood red eyes snapped up, his attention was on the potion master and he noticed that darkness in his eyes. "Tom, what happened?" Severus asked gently. Somehow he couldn't be angry at this man, he could never be angry with him. He didn't know why, in all honesty he though it was because he had used the chords of his soul to stitch the other man's.

"Sev, you know how I managed to get that cloak, don't you?" he asked slowly, his voice was filled with uncertainty and nervousness. With the flick of his wrist Severus' familiar ebony wand was in his hand and he conjured himself a stool, he had a feeling this was going to take a bit. He didn't know the details but he had a feeling it had to do something with that night, that horrible night which had taken his Lily from him. "Not entirely," he replied slowly, his voice was measured in an attempt to hide his thoughts from the man across from him.

Tom sighed as he leaned his elbows on the work bench and ran his hand through his wavy chocolate hair, "I did something I shouldn't have. Something I'm not supposed to be able to do," he said softly. For once in Tom's life he sounded uncertain, Severus hummed as he relaxed a little and crossed his arms. He waited patiently for him to continue, what ever this was it was bothering the young Dark Lord enough to seek him out for a chat, which was usual, unless it involved an invasion or potions. "Sev, I got through the wards of Hogwarts, I managed to enter the castle without being detected. The castle even bestowed a glamour upon me," he began. Severus' eyes widened, he was well aware that Dumbledore and Flitwick had erected wards to block Tom from entering the grounds. "Did you break them?" asked Severus, know setting the list of potions which Poppy required off to the side, he would deal with Madame Pomphry later, this was far more important.

Tom shook his head and replied, "No, the castle let me in, the gates opened on their own and there was even a carriage waiting for me. I thought it was a trap until I reached the doors of the castle, that was when I received the glamour and I felt as though I was being welcomed home." His blood red eyes watched his fingers as he slowly messaged them, it was a nervous tick of Tom's, one which many mistook as the man having soar hands from work. "It was as if all of the terrible things I had done didn't matter. Even the castle doors opened by themselves, I continued to the Headmaster's office expecting to have to guess every sweet under the sun, except," he paused and lifted his eyes from his hands, they met obsidian orbs and he said with all sincerity, "except, the gargoyle bowed, it bowed to me as though I were it's master before allowing me entry."

Severus' eyes widened, never had the gargoyle allowed that, it was created to protect the headmaster and remain absolutely loyal to both the Headmaster and the Founders of Hogwarts. "Tom, you used to believe that you were the heir of Salazar but what if," he began and paused when Tom's eyes locked on his, "What if you really are." There was silence in the room, and the air felt thick, it was as though Severus was crewing a potion and the fumes had filled the air, sucking the oxygen out of their lungs. "If there is a chance that I share Salazar's blood, then what about Hadrian? He can speak to snakes as well, only one of Salazar's heirs can do that," said Tom slowly.

Severus paused and began to wonder the same thing, Harry must have shared some of Salazar's blood, which made no sense, the Potters weren't related to Slytherin, they were Gryffindors both by blood and virtue. James had no secret talents, none of the tell tale signs of the brilliant blood which ran through the veins of the Slytherin house. James' only talent was Defense Against the Dark Arts, he was horrendous at everything else. The one who was talented at Potions, Charms, and Runes was, "Lily," he whispered as his eyes grew as large as saucers. Blood red eyes narrowed in confusion as the young Dark Lord tilted his head, "Lily Potter nee Evans, but she couldn't speak to snakes, at least that I saw," he mused as he looked at Tom.

"I'm an only child and I have no relatives," stated Tom flatly, "If I had I wouldn't have ended up in that god forsaken orphanage." Severus rubbed his temples, this was making his head hurt, there had to be a connection somehow. "Severus, I was able to summon the cloak on a whim. I didn't use a charm or anything, it just came to me," Tom said softly. Severus' brows knit together in confusion, he had head of the beautiful Potter Cloak, it was an heirloom. "Wait why did Dumbledore have it? I don't understand why the cloak flew to you but the bigger question is what he was doing with it. Now that I think about it, that damn cloak wasn't in the house," Severus said rapidly, his anger began to flare at the Headmaster as his memory was thrown back to that dreadful night.

"I was wondering the same thing," Tom commented as he looked at the black table, he could see flecks of white quartz in it, "that night would have been so different if they had it. I wouldn't have destroyed a boy's chance at happiness." The room went cold and a darkness which had been present made it's self known. That was what was ebbing away at Tom, that he was the reason that Harry's life was a living hell, he had condemned the boy to misery before he even had a chance to live. Tom's head was bowed as he looked at his hands which were in his lap, his ring glistened in the light as he traced the band with his fingers.

There was something special about the ring, it wasn't just because it had belonged to the Gaunt family, but there had to be something else important about it. The issue was that Tom just couldn't seem to remember, "Tom, Thomas," called Severus as he placed a hand on the man's shoulder. The young Lord made no reply which worried Severus, he felt panic ensue as he jumped from the stool making it clatter to the floor as he did so. He grabbed the young brown haired man and squeezed his shoulders before calling, "Marvolo!" Tom twitched as Severus shook him and looked at the Potion Master in confusion. He scowled at him for a moment before shaking his head and rubbing his temples, "My head's splitting Sev, I need to lay down," he mumbled, his words began to slur together.

Severus loosened his grip on the man, only now did he realize how slender Tom was, his hands felt as though they had squeezed the shoulders of a skeleton. "Tom have you been eating?" asked Severus softly, now his concern was becoming very real. The young Lord wasn't acting right, his usual vitality was slipping, "I have, I just can't eat much, my stomach's been bothering me," he replied hesitantly. Severus sighed before standing before the wizard and looking down his hooked nose at him, as though Tom was a mere student in one of his glasses. He leaned against the lab table and crossed his arms, "The headaches? How long have those been going on?" he asked coolly.

"A while, you've been busy and with Hadrian here I didn't want the boy to suffer, you also need rest," he reasoned as he looked at the hem of his robe with extreme interest. Severus sighed, he really did feel as though he were dealing with a student, "What were you going to accomplish by starting yourself and living in agony?" he asked. What happened next was the most unusual thing, Tom's shoulders lift and fell, he actually shrugged. Tom Marvolo Riddle, Dark Lord and supposed heir of Slytherin never shrugged, it was unbecoming of him. "You have helped me a great deal Sev, I don't want to take more advantage of you than I already have, I know you sacrificed a piece of your soul for mine," he replied.

Severus smiled bitterly at the memory, the only reason he had done that was to repay a debt and he believed that Harry was safe and sound. He didn't have a reason to live anymore, at least then he didn't. "Tom, with everything going on, you're near the top of the list," he stated before turning on his heel and walking over to one of his storage cupboards and pulling two phials, "Take two and call me in the morning," he instructed before pressing both phials into the young man's hand.

It was odd to see Tom as a person who was younger than himself, especially since he was technically older, far older in fact. A chuckle came from Tom as he shook his head and smiled a little, "You quoting a muggle movie? Sev I think the world will surly end," he commented before uncorking the two phials and knocking them back as though they were shots of fire whiskey. He didn't even groan about the taste. There was silence again between them as Severus began to process everything he had heard, "Severus, there is one more thing, well two more. The first is that the Sorting Hat knew my name, I didn't even have to put it on my head it was as if it knew what I was looking for. Second, I was able to Apperate out of the castle," he said slowly, as though the words and concepts were forging to him as well.

Severus slowly reached down and righted the stool before replying, "I don't know much about that hat, honestly the thing has always crept me out, I would have to look into it for more information. As for the ability to Apparate, I don't know either, only the Headmaster is able to do so." He was about to continue when the fireplace in the corner flashed violently. Severus growled before looking at Tom pleadingly, "I have to answer, it's Albus, you can stay here."

Tom nodded slowly and Severus quickly spun around and knelt on the floor. He stuck his head in the green flames and said snidely, "Yes Albus?" He stared at the elderly wizard who was before him, the man's infernal twinkle was showing in his eyes, "Severus, my boy, I was wondering if you knew where Harry was, he's been missing for a while and I sent you to check on him," Albus began. Severus internally growled, the man spoke of it so lightly of the hell Harry had to endure. "I did, he seemed fine, that was days ago Albus, I already reported to you about the boy," he stated.

The half rimmed glasses were glistening in the light as the elder wizard tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, "I'm aware, but did you see anything? The Ministry states that the wards fell after you left, perhaps the person who took Harry was hanging around anyone," Albus paused and looked over his glasses at Severus, "Suspicious?" he asked simply. There was a smile on his lips but it didn't reach his eyes, Severus hummed and replied curtly, "No." He was about to get up, he hated floo calls, they always hurt his knees and back, "Severus, you would tell me if you saw something wouldn't you?" Albus asked. Severus paused and stared at him, his occlumacy walls were erected and he strengthened them. "Of course Headmaster, now if you will excuse me, I have to finish some Fever Reducer for Poppy," he said quickly.

"Severus, I was wondering if you were in my office lately, there was some chatter among the portraits about an unannounced guest, something about the return of an heir," he said slowly, Severus could feel Tom's eyes boring into his back. The portraits knew something he didn't, something very powerful and he made note to speak to them as soon as he turned to Hogwarts. "I see, I haven't been Headmaster, perhaps it was one of those hooligans you call students," he stated before stepping away.

Albus vanished without a trace and Severus turned to Tom. "I see Albus knows of my visit," he said sheepishly. Severus walked over to Tom and slowly lifted the wizard's chin and looked into his blood red eyes, they lacked their usual luster. He slowly placed his hand on Tom's brow, there was a thin layer of sweat and Severus hissed with disapproval, "You're burning up," he stated as he held his hand out and a fever reducer zipped through the air to his waiting hand. "Have you been sleeping at all?" he asked curiously. Tom blinked as he leaned into Severus' touch, "No, I can't seem to, the demons, they keep coming back," he said slowly. The Potion Master looked at him critically, "That an you've been exhausting your core, you need to take it easy," Severus stated. Tom sighed and looked at him he sighed, "I haven't been doing that much, I don't even know why I'm so drained," he commented.

Severus lowered his hands and shook his head, "Still, you should get some rest, I am going to start brewing two heritage potions, one for you and another for Harry, perhaps that will clear some of this up," he stated briskly. He knew he had left no room for Tom to argue he had done so intentionally, he needed the Dark Lord to rest, and not be up and about until he could figure out what was going on. Tom nodded and slipped off the stool, "I'll see you at dinner," he said softly before leaving the lab, the glass doors clicked closed on his way out. Severus sighed and tucked a lose bang behind his ear before leaning against his work table and crossing his arms. A lineage potion was a lot of work, but so many things just weren't adding up. He had to make sense of them somehow.

~~WL ~~

Draco was sauntering down the hallway, he was all too happy that Harry was finally up and about. He didn't like seeing anyone look that deathly pale, or tired. Today was filled with lessons and oddly his teachers, mainly his mother, Tom and Severus didn't mind allowing Harry to join in classes as well. Draco turned the corner on the ball of his foot and began to head back to the study, he had left to go to the bathroom and need a break from his mother. She was teaching both of them how to act, Harry was actually more civilized than she thought previously, which was also a shock for Draco. He could remember his mother chatting with him about setting up a program for Harry, to make him into a strong and powerful Potter Scion. Draco naturally didn't protest, he couldn't wait to show everyone just who his friend was and the power they could wield together.

Power, it was a driving factor for the Malfoy heir, his family had taught him a number of things. Tom often told Draco that life was tough and in order to succeed that the traditional views of black and white had to be put aside, that in reality there were two kinds of people in the world, those who seek power and those too afraid to. What was startling was the fact that the man was honestly the most powerful wizard in the world and could do more damage with a simple stinging hex than an adult's Cruciatus. It was amazing how silently and with the mere flick of his wand, Tom could command the world. He was a professional with mind magics and often gave Severus a run for his money. Tom had always been Draco's role model for that, he was creative and clever, there was little the man couldn't figure out. Tom was so good at manipulation that even his father fell to the man's charms.

Severus on the other hand believed in a different kind of power, knowledge. The more a person knew and was able to execute the more powerful he became, everything else would fall into place. Severus wasn't in Draco's mind as reckless as Tom who wanted raw power, Severus was specific and often was more curious about refining such a raw thing than simply compiling it. Books were always in Severus' hands which was what made the man dangerous, that and the fact that he could invent hexes and spells on a whim, that you never wanted to be on the receiving end of.

Lucius, his father was driving by one muggle expression, 'Money makes the world go round.' Well in the hands of Lucius Malfoy it certainly did, there was little Lucius couldn't do with it. There were two sides of the Malfoy patriarch, there was the side where he would pull his wand and hex an offender to the next millennium and then there was the financial man. With the flick of his pen he could make things vanish, he could make or break a person by simply writing a check or walking into a branch of Gringotts. In both the muggle and magical realms he was a god who loved a firm bottom line, Draco was one of the few children who could brag that his father had a beautiful hand assembled Maserati Gran Turismo MC Stadale that was both wicked on the road and in the air. It was ridiculous the amount of power his father had, the only two people with more funds than his father were Tom Riddle, and believe it or not, the raven haired little boy in the library.

There was one more person who made a major impact on his life and that was Narcissa, his mother. Unlike the three boys who were into physically expressing it, she was into strategy. It was rare when Draco's mother didn't know who's hand to shake and who to dance with to get a law passed. For years he had watched his mother at Galas, every movement was calculated and she handed people as though they were assets, she didn't care as long as she achieved her goal. He could remember watching her drape herself in beautiful silks, gems and those bare backed dresses which were the undoing of his father. She was a force to be reconed with and believed that power wasn't simply measured by money, knowledge or amount, but rather aptitude. How the way a man entered the room, spoke, dressed, and even moved was what determined his place.

Draco pushed open the doors of the library to see his mother standing before Harry, "Draco! Just who I needed, please explain to Hadrian the importance of a Wizard's carriage," she stated. Draco noticed a pleading expression on his friend's face and chuckled internally, he remembered this lecture. He walked over to Harry and stood before him, "Have you ever watched the way my father walks? Or even Tom and Severus?" he asked. The three men had very different styles and mannerisms to their movements but they were prime examples of how one of high standing conducts himself. "My father tends to stride with purpose, yet has a hint of grace, his firm and stands tall at all times," explained Draco as he squared his shoulders and strode with a little purpose towards the fireplace. He earned a chuckle from his mother for his act as he put on his mock Lucius snarl. Narcissa's hand flew up to cover her mouth as her lips quirked into a smile. He loved making her smile, in Draco's opinion his mother needed to do it more. He turned on his heel and looked at Harry.

"Uncle Sev, is different, he's smooth, soundless and seems to float, especially in his school robes. He's got a powerful stride but it's a little smoother than my fathers," Draco explained as he imitated Severus, his arms were crossed purposefully, his chin was parallel to the floor and his shoes didn't make a sound against the polished hardwood floor. Draco had seen Severus in his robes a handful of times, but could remember how they seemed to billow as he moved. He stopped before Harry and smiled, he was a breath away from the raven haired boy, now he could see his emerald green eyes, they were breath taking. Ocean blues met emeralds and the boys stared at one another for a moment before Draco cleared his throat and took a step back.

He looked at Harry and smiled, "Uncle Tom," he paused and thought for a moment, he had see the man move and honestly he didn't move like a normal man, he moved with the ease of a dancer, not a ballet one but Jazz or Latin. There was something elegant with his movements, he was like a panther, elegant, smooth and powerful. His gaze was always intense, it could bore a hole through a person and see into their soul. He seemed to own the room, even when Lucius was in it. He paused as he attempted to figure out how to explain it, the way the man swung his hips slightly and that infernal smirk on his lips when he was up to no good. Draco smiled and stated, "Uncle Tom is smooth as silk, and honestly the man makes my father's charms seem basic." Harry looked confused and he could tell the boy had never watched how the three men entered the room. He sighed and rubbed his temples, "It's as if he's dancing even when he isn't, and when he dances well let's just say he's got serious skill," Draco said simply. He was beginning to have a difficult time explaining how Tom was the more fluid of the three.

Narcissa grinned and clapped her hands together before calling, "Tom!" Draco and Harry's eyes widened as the man poked his head through the door, "Yes?" he asked curiously as he looked at the boys and then back to her, "What did they do?" Draco and Harry looked at one another and then to Tom, they weren't that troublesome. The Malfoy scion crossed his arms and glared, "We haven't done anything," he stated.

Tom chuckled as he slowly walked into the room, yet something was off. His strides lacked his usual strength and his eyes looked glassy. "Tom?" Draco's mother asked, he could tell that his mother was worried. Oddly the man looked worse for wear, it was as though he had spent several hours dueling Severus, which would reduce anyone to exhaustion. He paused and clutched his chest, his knees went weak and Draco watched the man begin to crumble.

In a flash Harry was at his side, holding him up, it amazed Draco at both how strong and fast the boy really was. "Uncle?" he asked with shinning eyes as he looked up at Tom, Draco stared in shock, he had just freely called Tom his uncle. He paused and looked at Tom who seemed slightly stunned but his body seemed to sag, causing Harry to stumble. Narcissa was at his side and wrapped her arm around Tom's waist and looked at Harry, "Let's take him to the chaise Lounge," she directed before she began to guide him to the plush green lounge. In moments Harry and Narcissa had placed the man on the plush furniture, Draco picked up one of the blankets and draped it over the man. He couldn't help but become a little concerned, Tom never looked this tired. He may looked sleepless but never weak. Harry was standing before the man, unsure of what to do and looked honestly nervous, his hands were wringing and his green eyes were locked on Tom.

"I think that's enough for today," said Narcissa softly before calling a house elf and asking for Severus to be brought to her as well as Lucius. "Master Lucius is unavailable," the elf replied quickly. Narcissa looked at him puzzled for a moment, "Where is he?" she asked and noticed Tom looked just as confused as he did. The elf looked Narcissa in the eye and replied, "He is currently at the Ministry in the Hall of Records, none of us can reach him." She sighed and rubbed her temples, now that she thought back on it she could remember him mentioning something to that affect. "Alright just have Severus come, tell him Tom isn't doing well," she commented. The elf nodded and vanished with a pop, Harry ignored the creature and had become ridged. His slender frame seemed to lock up, his emerald green eyes were locked on the man laying before him and his black hair seemed a tad messier than before.

"Hadrian?" asked Draco slowly, his voice was soft as he placed a hand on the boy's shoulders. He felt the other boy stiffen and jerk back quickly, his eyes were wide and he looked as though Draco were about to hurt him. Green eyes were wide with terror as he began to back away from the group. "Harry?" asked Draco softly as he lifted a hand only for Harry to flinch once more and take another step back. He felt a pain shoot through his chest and looked at the now terrified boy, he hadn't seen Harry look this scare of him since he had arrived that Christmas Eve. His chest was heaving and he looked ready to bolt from the room. "Draco, give him space," instructed the tired voice of the Dark Lord.

Silver eyes drifted to the figure who was slowly sitting up, despite Narcissa's protests. "Harry, breathe, it's alright," he instructed softly, his voice was light and airy. Draco's eyes widened a fraction, he had never heard the man speak this way before, he didn't usually raise his voice but he was never this gentle, except around Harry. Harry shook his head and a hand shot to his chest, "What's going on?" asked Narcissa in confusion. Tom held up an elegant hand and called once again, "Harry, no one will hurt you, it's alright, you did nothing wrong."

The boy squeezed his eyes shut as he began to visibly tremble, "Harry, come here," Tom commanded gently as he lifted his hand, palm up as a sign of surrender. The raven haired boy looked nervous and stared at the hand, "I won't hit you, come here please," Tom reiterated. The boy wrung his hands and took several steps forward so that he was standing before the man. He closed his eyes and braced himself, it was only now that Draco understood what was happening, Harry was having a panic attack, as to why he didn't know. Tom slowly leaned forward and wrapped a hand around Harry's and gently pulled the boy onto the chaise lounge. Before the boy could blink his arms were around the young boy and he was being pressed to the Dark Lord's chest. "It's alright Harry, you did nothing wrong, I'm just tired," he whispered reassuringly and kissed the top of the boy's head. His red eyes fell on Draco as he waved the silver haired boy over. Draco complied and nodded as he slowly sat near them on the lounge and ran his fingers through Harry's hair.

Now he understood why Tom was always carding his fingers through the boy's hair, it was soft, very soft and seemed to sooth the young man. He watched Harry's body slowly relax in Tom's embrace and he sighed, "No one will ever hurt you again Harry," whispered Tom reassuringly with a small smile on his face. There was a rustle of fabric and Draco looked up to see Severus standing there with a potion's bag and a smile on his face. "I see we are getting along, now then, Tom if you planned on sleeping on the floor you could have just stayed in my lab," commented Severus.

Harry lifted his head and stared at the man who was grinning and had his arms crossed, "I don't want to use that mat you call a futon Severus, not all of us are so in love with potions that we will sleep in your lab," commented Tom as he scowled. Severus rolled his eyes and hummed, before popping the cork of a potions bottle and passing it to Tom. Without being asked Harry sat up and looked at the pair. Tom arched a dark brow and looked at Severus, "How do I know you're not trying to poison me?" he asked.

Severus' eyes narrowed, "If I wanted you dead I would have done it already," he stated. Red eyes fell on the bottle and he hummed, "Alright," he stated as he lifted the bottle and gestured to Severus before knocking the bottle back and grimacing at the taste, "Honestly can't you make those things taste better?" he asked. The potions master shook his head and chuckled, Draco remembered having that discussion with Severus. In reality he couldn't change how the potion's tasted because it would mess with the structure of the potion and change what they did. He had managed to make things like painkiller and fever reducer taste better but if someone was naughty he usually brought out the horrible tasting ones, well naughty students and Tom. "No," Severus replied curtly before collecting the bottle and looking at the boys. "I think that should be the end of your lessons for now," he commented.

Draco nodded in accord and nudged Harry, "Want to play a game of wizard chess?" he asked. Harry smiled brightly before looking at Tom and then to Severus, "Okay," he replied before bounding across the room, trailing Draco. As they left the room Tom's eyes slowly closed and Draco noticed how the man seemed to fall into a place of peace.

~~WL~~

Papers fluttered every where, books were flying across the room and it took Lucius everything he had to keep up with the pace of the archive. Prior to this keeper he had been working at a slower pace and didn't have to worry about getting hit with anything. Madame Bones clearly knew something he didn't, the place was impossible to navigate and he had gotten lost several times over just looking for the material. It wasn't until later that he realized the stacks moved, it was irritating to watch the archive change shape and books shuffle themselves on the shelves. It was this constant shuffle which clearly protected the archive even from it's self. He slowly looked up at the ceiling and stared at the intricate locking mechanism made entirely of stone over his head, he could see the teeth and groves of the gears and the tumbler, they glistened in gold and silver, he had seen the inside of a muggle lock before but this was beautiful in a new sense of the word. The curvature of the gears, the elegant carvings on them and the attention to detail in the wards and enchantments made Hogwarts gates look simple. The tables even floated and he felt as though he had fallen down the blasted rabbit hole and entered Wonderland.

Lucius groaned as he swept his hand through his hair, he honestly couldn't find the Charter or even a hint of it, which made him wonder if the school even had one. The Ministry kept copies of everything, from birth certificates to drafts of speeches it was all there it was just a matter of finding it. "Where on earth is the Head Archivist?" he asked in frustration. The last time he had been in it he was constantly under the scrutinizing eyes of the Archivist himself. Yet this one was no where to be seen. He looked around curiously, there was no way the archivist wouldn't be around, and he practically oversaw everything in the building.

He was walking down the isles and took several turns only to see the hem of a beautiful emerald green robe flutter around the corner. He paused and quickly turned to see a graceful figure in a pair of towering black stilettos and a short skirt black skirt. His jaw hit the floor as he watched the robe sway and the figure dance with a pair of massive head phones resting on her head. His eyes traveled up her legs, which looked as though they went on for miles, and stared at her slender hips as they swung. Her hands were in the air as she stepped gingerly, her feet seemed to move on their own as he body bent and flex, he felt his body heat up as he watched her spin, her robe billowing as she did so, her fingers traveled in the air, summoning tomes and pages, she looked them over and with the flick of her wrist they were zipping across the place.

Her blue eyes were locked on the pages and her lips were curved in a grin as she gripped the large black cans on her head with one hand, a strand of her brown hair had fallen from their hair sticks and Lucius was about to criticize her before he noticed the official crest of the Head Archivist on her robes. "No way," he breathed as he watched the young woman roll her hips, it was as though he was watching a wave run through the young woman, it started from her hips, rolled through her abdomen, up her chest and then through her hands. He watched as she turned swiftly and stopped, her toes kept time as he fingers danced in the air commanding books wordlessly. She stopped when she noticed him and smiled before slipping the massive head phones off her head and letting them rest around her neck and stopped her CD player.

"Muggle invention, it wasn't too loud, was it?" she asked innocently, her teeth caught her lower lip and now Lucius could see the similarities between her and Narcissa, "No, I was looking for the Head Archivist," he stated. The young woman grinned, she couldn't possibly be over 25, she had a killer figure and not a wrinkle visible. "Well you've found her. You must be the man Madame Bones was laughing about. Like my new entrance?" she asked with a grin before allowing the materials to swarm her again. With the snap of her fingers the music began to play, it was loud and echoed through the archive, it was upbeat and sounded like a bulk of the underground punk music Lucius had caught Severus listening to. It was loud, electrifying and made even him want to move. "I will admit it was a shock," he replied as he watched her smile, he hadn't noticed them before but she was wearing a pair of blue tinted readers with silver frames. "I see. What can I do for you?" she asked as she scowled at a document, whipped out a self inking quill, corrected it and sent it on its way. The motion was so effortless Lucius was about to trip over her cloak, he didn't have that kind of elegance at his desk.

"A Charter for a school," he replied slowly and he watched as she looked out of the corner of her eye, there was a grin on her lips as she commented, "Hogwarts School of Witch Craft and Wizardry, many have looked for the Charter but few have come here," she said simply. Her voice was airy and filled with mystery as she looked down another isle, a black tome flew off the shelf and Lucius had to duck to avoid getting hit in the head with it. "Careful, I've been told I have a magnetic personality," she commented. Lucius swept a lock of his hair out of his face and straightened his robes. He could tell she was enjoying this as she opened the book, it seemed to hover before her as she tapped her fingers on her hip, "Nope, not what I'm looking for," she commented and waved the book away. He watched it zip through the air and fall in the proper place.

"You are correct in assuming that the school has a Charter, the thing is, Hogwarts is so old I have to really look," she commented, ignoring to bewilder look on Lucius' face, his lips were parted and he was about to ask her how she knew and she touched the side of her nose with her pointer finger and winked, "I always know." He scoffed at this, no one was all knowing, it was impossible there was simply too much to know. He turned the corner and was about to say something when she looked at him, "You think it's impossible, I understand your reasoning but there are many things you could never understand," she commented as she snapped her fingers and a series of letters in green envelopes with black ribbons and silver seals flew into view. Lucius gaped at the handwriting of Salazar as she examined the letters, "I'm connected to this archive, everything it knows I do, it's strange really, it s a link I can tap in times of need or when I have to find something," she explained.

Lucius nodded, now it didn't seem as odd to watch her work, "So you call these things to you?" he asked curiously as he watched her fold the letters again with the snap of her fingers and have them fly in another direction. "In a way," she replied cryptically, "I don't have to really do anything this place just knows, I can't explain it any other way." She paused and waited for the isles to finish shifting and he noticed that the title on the end of the stacks was Hogwarts Black Years, "How?" he asked. She chuckled as she stroked the shelf affectionately, "I told you we're connected," she commented. Lucius looked at the shelves and was about to pull a tome when he remembered what she said and looked at her wearily. Now it seemed far more personal, if he had known such sensitive information before he wouldn't have been rough on the materials or complained about the previous Archivist.

"You can touch them," she said gently as she conjured a chair and took a seat, the music seemed to fade as she crossed her ankles and took a moment of rest. Lucius looked at her curiously as he watched her lean back in the seat and close her eyes, "Are you alright?" he asked cautiously, he was honestly hoping that he hadn't hurt her some how. "I'm fine, I can tell the previous archivist wasn't as open as I am, sometimes when things are lost I have to summon them, which requires a little more concentration," she stated as she slipped her feet out of the heels and curled them under herself. She slowly began to relax and Lucius slowly pulled the tome out, he figured his silence would be appreciated and then it occurred to him, he never asked a question out loud.

"I can hear you, funny thing about this place its how we ensure that no one is breaking the rules," she stated simply and smiled at him, "Don't worry, you'll get used to it." Lucius nodded and opened the book, he watched as she entered a state in which nothing could ever affect her. He turned a few pages only for her brow to furrow and her eyes to snap open, "Odd, I can't reach it," she mused as she rose from the chair and slipped back into her heels. Lucius snapped the book closed and placed it on the shelf, "What does that mean?" he asked sternly, he was under the impression that she would always be able to find the documents and now to see her unable to find something made him understand just how bad it was.

"It means that its not here, which also means we've been breached, the only way to pull a document from the archive is to fill out a request. The request is processed and then placed in a log, unless… unless it was the archivist who pulled it," she mused before rubbing her temples, he could tell this was giving her a head ache. Lucius looked at her, "How old are you?" he asked curiously. Her eyes snapped open, he figured if he could distract her that maybe she would be able to distract her self from the pain. "Now or when I was made Archivist?" she asked slowly as she looked him in the eye. Lucius froze and couldn't seem to understand just what she was saying. She looked young but that question confused him, "I was 23 when they made me Archivist, but now I don't know, I haven't kept track," she replied simply before slipping her hands into the pockets of her robe.

Her blue eyes looked around the room and she sighed, "I've been here so long that days don't seem to matter anymore, I know the date and yet I don't care, because as long as I'm in here I'm safe," she explained as she looked at the lock above her head, "As long as I'm in here I'm immortal."

Lucius felt his head spin she wasn't making sense, "But you're real, this doesn't make sense, how can you live forever?" he asked. She chuckled as she slipped off a black silk glove and held her hand out to him, "Go on," she invited as the nobleman slowly reached out and went to touch her fingers only to discover that they were ice cold. He blanched and looked at her with wide eyes as he grabbed her hand with both of his and went to check her pulse. Only to find it was nonexistent, her skin was as cold as ice and he slowly released her hand.

"I'm dead, like all the others I had to die before I became one with the archive. The archivist isn't made by choice, we were placed here to save us. From the moment we are born we are destined to die young," she explained as she slipped her hand back into her glove. Lucius shivered, he couldn't understand how a person like her had lived that life knowing she would die young, "What was your name?" he asked slowly. The Archivist paused and looked at him nervously, clearly it had been a while since anyone asked, "Selene, Selene Roxanne Flamel," she replied.

The blonde's jaw hit the floor, "Flamel as in the son of Nicholas and Perry Flamel the famous Alchemists?" he asked nervously. That explained a great deal, she was powerful even as a child but it didn't explain why her parents allowed her to die, "I was weak at birth, they didn't know what to do and I was dead before they could finish the stone," she explained. Lucius looked at the young woman before him, she had grown up loved but died young. "My parents visit me, and I can visit them as well, I just can't be gone long," she explained with a smile.

"What are you?" he asked, she didn't look like a corpse she wasn't rotting. She smiled and replied softly, "A piece of very rare magic, now then," she said and clapped her hands together, "Someone must have removed the Ministry Copy, I'll have to check the logs," she commented before spinning on the spot and vanishing.

Lucius sighed, he had just lost the woman who was leading him through the stacks, he had a hard enough time getting to where he was before he saw her, now he was really lost. He groaned and was about to shout when he heard a voice behind him, "It seems it was taken out by the previous archivist and given to the current Headmaster, how odd, the previous Keeper allowed it to leave," she commented. Lucius jumped out of his skin and stared at the witch perched on the book case behind him, her legs were crossed and she seemed very comfortable on her new found perch. He shook his head and glared at her in confusion, she slipped off her glasses and hummed, "The Keeper is the portrait upstairs, the Archivist is me, I work as overseer, caretaker and master of this place. The Keeper ensures that nothing leaves," she explained.

He nodded and looked at her, "So Albus has the Charter, this only makes things more difficult," he stated as he crossed his arms. Now he had to figure out how to get out of the archive and to the Headmaster to demand viewing of the charter, which would entail him being able to get to the school. He nearly smacked himself in the head and looked at her, of course she would know how to get out. Sometimes he wondered what inclined him to think like a Hufflepuff.

"Thank you, how do I-" before he could finish he felt himself spinning and then falling. "FUCK!" he shouted as he felt himself fall.

He blacked out before hitting the floor harshly and landing on a hard and cold stone floor. His body was numb and ached all over, he should have known she would just throw him out. Something nudged his side calling him to consciousness once more, it was harsh and anything but gentle, his aching body didn't appreciate it. Lucius could faintly hear a child asking, "Is it dead?" He wrinkled his nose with irritation, he had been reduced from the Honorable Lord of the House of Malfoy to an "it" in seconds flat. "Someone get a teacher!" called a young girl, well he must have been in a school and it was clearly co-ed since they were looking for a teacher.

A black leather oxford nudged the wizard once more, a little harder, and Lucius growled, "Kick me again, and I'll hex you into next Tuesday," he hissed. There was a gasp as students moved back, he could hear the soles of their shoes against the floor. There was a hum, "Nope, **he**'s alive and from that statement alright," commented the familiar voice. Lucius sat up and looked into a pair of familiar onyx eyes. Severus growled and shot a cold look at all of the students "Why are all of you still here, a majority of you are already failing my class, I suggest you spend as much time regarding your books as you did suffocating this man," no one moved and Lucius watched Severus smirk before shouting, "10 points from each house for every student here still gawking!" he commanded.

Lucius watched with amusement as they all dashed off to their proper houses. Severus spun around, his black robe billowed as he did so and he offered a hand to the blonde noble.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, now what the hell are you doing here, Lucius?"


End file.
